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 .
Status of Claims
This is a final office action in response to the amendment filed 17 September 2025, claims 1-2, 4, 8, 10, and 14 have been amended. Claim 3 has been canceled. And claim 21 is newly added. Claims 1-2 and 4-21 remain pending and have been examined.
Response to Amendment
Applicants amendment to claims 1-2, 4, 8, 10, and 14 and addition of new claim 21 has been entered.
Applicant’s amendment is insufficient to overcome the pending 35 U.S.C. 101 rejection. The rejection remains pending and is updated below, as necessitated by amendment.
Applicant’s amendment is insufficient to overcome the pending 35 U.S.C. 103 rejection. The rejection remains pending and is updated below, as necessitated by amendment.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments regarding the 35 U.S.C. 103 rejection have been fully considered, but are moot in view of the new grounds of rejection necessitated by Applicant’s amendment to the claims because the arguments do not apply to the combination of references used in the current rejection detailed below.
Applicant’s arguments regarding the 35 U.S.C. 101 rejection have been fully considered. But are not persuasive. Applicant asserts that as amended, the amended claim language for “generating a UI associated with the graphical representation of the user space, wherein the graph representation includes a first node representing the project, and a second set of nodes representing the set of users, wherein the distance between the first node and the second set of nodes indicates ranking of the set of users in relation to the project, and wherein the ranking of the set of users in relation to the project is determined based on at least one of expertise of a user of the set of users, or availability of a user of the set of users; … wherein the visual indicators are included in a pop-up window and include colored elements corresponding to different availabilities of the set of users,” allow a subject matter expert to be chosen for a specific request using a specifically specialized user interface (UI) and showing data in a specific way that is not directed to an abstract idea, provides a practical application of any alleged abstract idea because the technical API call/response for automatic assignment (Spec. [para. 0018]) is a technical solution to a technical problem that improves memory allocation (Spec. [para. 0033]), and amounts to significantly more when the claimed elements are considered alone or in combination. Examiner respectfully disagrees.
The recited claim limitations are directed to skill based matching of a subject matter expert to a particular task based on expertise and availability parameters. A human resource professional or project manager could mentally determine a set of personnel with relevant experience for a certain project or task through review of resume or prior knowledge of each person’s skill and experience level, mentally or through use of pen and paper review of who best fits the requirements in a ranking order based on the determined factors. Further assigning a task to the best fit personnel is a form of managing human activities. Therefore, the claim falls within the mental processes and certain methods of organizing human activities groupings of abstract ideas.
While the claims include additional elements in the form of a user interface (UI), memories, processors, UI input elements, a graph representation with nodes, and a pop up window for visualizing user availability data, these elements are claimed and described in the Specification at a high level of generality, without sufficient technical details to actively claim an intended result of improved memory allocation or improvement to API technology. Each additional element is used as a tool to implement the recited abstract idea. While the efficiency or speed of data analysis and comparison may be improved through use of a processor to achieve results that could be reached mentally, increased data analysis speed or efficiency is not a technical improvement, it is a business process improvement. When considered individually or in combination the recited limitations and additional elements do not amount to significantly more than the recited human resource allocation abstract idea. Further the output set users, ranked based on a best fit distance for the intended task, still requires human review and decision making. The user selection of a particular user of the set of ranked users, and the transmission of a message addressed to the selected user is mere data input and transmission, both of which are insignificant extra-solution activity. Therefore, the 35 U.S.C. 101 rejection is proper and maintained.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 101
35 U.S.C. 101 reads as follows:
Whoever invents or discovers any new and useful process, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter, or any new and useful improvement thereof, may obtain a patent therefor, subject to the conditions and requirements of this title.
Claims 1-2, 4-21 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 because the claimed invention is directed to an abstract idea of assigning users to a project based on expertise and availability, without significantly more. Independent claim 1 recites a device, independent claim 8 recites a process, and independent claim 14 recites a product for applying graph representation to user and project related data to automatically allocate projects to users based on expertise and a set of statuses associates with the users.
Under Step 1 independent claims 1, 8, and 14 recite at least one step or act, including receiving a data structure. Thus, the claims fall within one of the statutory categories of invention.
Independent claim 1 recites at least the following limitations:
transmit, to a user device, instructions for a user interface (UI) including one or more input elements;
receive, from the user device and based on the one or more input elements, a data structure representing a project associated with a technical request;
extract one or more keywords from the data structure;
extract one or more properties from the data structure;
determine a set of users for the project, based on applying the one or more keywords and the one or more properties to a graph representation of a user space;
generate a UI associated with the graph representation of the user space, wherein the graph representation includes a first node representing the project, and a second set of nodes representing the set of users,
wherein a distance between the first node and the second set of nodes indicates ranking of the set of users in relation to the project, and
wherein the ranking of the set of users in relation to the project is determined based on at least one of expertise of a user of the set of users, or availability of a user of the set of users;
determine a set of statuses, corresponding to the set of users, associated with availability of the set of users;
transmit, to the user device, instructions for a U1 including visual indicators for the set of users and the set of statuses, wherein the visual indicators are included in a pop-up window and include colored elements corresponding to different availabilities of the set of users;
receive, from the user device, an indication of a selected user from the set of users; and
transmit a message addressed to the selected user.
Independent claim 8 recites at least the following limitations:
receiving, from a user device, a data structure representing a project associated with a technical request;
mapping the data structure to a graph representation of a user space to determine a set of users;
generating a user interface (UI) associated with the graph representation of the user space, wherein the graph representation includes a first node representing the project, and a second set of nodes representing the set of users,
wherein a distance between the first node and the second set of nodes indicates ranking of the set of users in relation to the project, and
wherein the ranking of the set of users in relation to the project is determined based on at least one of expertise of a user of the set of users, or availability of a user of the set of users;
determining a set of statuses, corresponding to the set of users, associated with availability of the set of users;
transmitting, to the user device, instructions for a UI including visual indicators for the set of users and the set of statuses, wherein the visual indicators are included in a pop-up window and include colored elements corresponding to different availabilities of the set of users;
receiving, from the user device, an indication of a selected user from the set of users; and
transmitting a message addressed to the selected user.
Independent claim 14 recites at least the following limitations:
receive a plurality of data structures representing a plurality of projects associated with technology;
determine, for each data structure in the plurality of data structures, a corresponding set of users based on a graph representation of a user space;
generate a user interface (UI) associated with the graph representation of the user space, wherein the graph representation includes a first node representing a project of the plurality of projects, and a second set of nodes representing the corresponding set of users,
wherein a distance between the first node and the second set of nodes indicates ranking of the set of users in relation to the project, and
wherein the ranking of the set of users in relation to the project is determined based on at least one of expertise of a user of the corresponding set of users, or availability of a user of the corresponding set of users;
determine, for each corresponding set of users, an associated set of statuses indicating availability of the set of users;
transmit instructions for a UI including visual indicators for the corresponding set of users and the set of statuses, wherein the visual indicators are included in a pop-up window and include colored elements corresponding to different availabilities of the corresponding set of users; and
transmit, for each data structure, a message addressed to a top-ranked user in the corresponding set of users.
Under Step 2A Prong One, the limitations recited in claims 1, 8, and 14 for transmitting instructions, receiving a data structure, extracting one or more keywords from the data structure, extracting one or more properties from the data structure, mapping the data structures to a graph representation of a user space, determining a set of users based on the graph representation, determining a set of users for the project, determining a set of statuses corresponding to the set of users, generating a graphical representation of nodes representing the project and the set of users indicating user ranking, ranking each corresponding set of users according to the statuses, transmitting visual indicators for the set of users in a pop-up window, receiving an indication of a selected user, and transmitting a message to the selected user, transmitting a message to the top-ranked user in the set of users, as drafted, illustrate a process that, under its broadest reasonable interpretation is directed to certain methods of organizing human activity because the claim steps assign users to a project based on expertise and availability. Therefore, the claims are reasonably construed as falling within the certain methods of organizing human activity grouping of abstract concepts, and additionally fall within the mental processes grouping of abstract ideas because the recited limitations for skills based matching of users to a project involve collecting user expertise and status data, analyzing it, and displaying certain results of the collection and analysis to recommend a set of users for assignment to a project could be performed by a project manager or human resource professional mentally or through further data analysis using a pen and paper to compare potential users based on predetermined factors. Further the output set users, ranked based on a best fit distance for the intended task, still requires human review and decision making. The user selection of a particular user of the set of ranked users, and the transmission of a message addressed to the selected user is mere data input and transmission, both of which are insignificant extra-solution activity. As a result the recited claim limitations are directed to an abstract idea.
Under Step 2A Prong Two, the judicial exception of claims 1, 8, and 14 is not integrated into a practical application. The claims recite a processor, storage device, user interface, pop-up window, and graphical node representation of users and the project, for performing the recited steps. These elements are recited at a high level of generality (i.e., as a generic processor performing a generic computer function) and amount to no more than mere instructions to apply the exception using generic computer components. See MPEP 2106.05(f). For example, Applicant’s specification at paragraph [0075-0076] states: “The processor 620may include a central processing unit, a graphics processing unit, a microprocessor, a controller, a microcontroller, a digital signal processor, a field-programmable gate array, an application- specific integrated circuit, and/or another type of processing component. The processor 620 may be implemented in hardware, firmware, or a combination of hardware and software. In some implementations, the processor 620 may include one or more processors capable of being programmed to perform one or more operations or processes described elsewhere herein.” Adding generic computer components to perform generic functions, such as data gathering, performing calculations and data associations, and outputting a result would not transform the claim into eligible subject matter. See MPEP 2106.05(h). While the claims include additional elements in the form of a user interface (UI), memories, processors, UI input elements, a graph representation with nodes, and a pop up window for visualizing user availability data, these elements are claimed and described in the Specification at a high level of generality, without sufficient technical details to actively claim an intended result of improved memory allocation or improvement to API technology. Each additional element is used as a tool to implement the recited abstract idea. While the efficiency or speed of data analysis and comparison may be improved through use of a processor to achieve results that could be reached mentally, increased data analysis speed or efficiency is not a technical improvement, it is a business process improvement. Accordingly, the additional elements do not integrate the abstract idea into a practical application because they do not impose any meaningful limits on practicing the abstract idea.
Under Step 2B, claims 1, 8, and 14 do not include additional elements that are sufficient to amount to significantly more than the judicial exception. As discussed above with respect to the integration of the abstract idea into a practical application, the additional elements of a processor and storage device amount to no more than mere instructions to apply the exception using a generic computer component which cannot provide an inventive concept.
Dependent claims 2, 4-7, 9-13, and 15-21 include the abstract ideas of the independent claims. The limitations of the dependent claims merely narrow the method of organizing human activity/ mental processes abstract idea by describing how the data is input, the type of data analyzed, and the type and medium for data transmitted to users. The limitations of the dependent claims are not integrated into a practical application because none of the additional elements set forth any limitations that meaningfully limit the abstract idea implementation. There are no additional elements that transform the claim into a patent eligible idea by amounting to significantly more. The analysis above applies to all statutory categories of invention. Therefore claims 1-2 and 4-21 are ineligible under 35 U.S.C. 101.
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 (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) 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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or non-obviousness.
Claims 1-2 and 4-21 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Mohtasib et al. (US 2025/0068996) in view of Etches et al. (US 2022/0343087), and in further view of Waterman et al. (US 11,144,853).
Regarding Amended Claim 1, Mohtasib et al. discloses a system for applying graph representations of user spaces, the system comprising: one or more memories; and one or more processors, communicatively coupled to the one or more memories, configured to: (The system 100 includes a computing device 116 configured to obtain task records that define tasks to be performed in the facility, and to allocate the tasks to workers deployed in the facility to perform the tasks. Mohtasib et al. [para. 0014-0017]. … The computing device 116 includes a processor 200 …, interconnected with a non-transitory computer readable storage medium, such as a memory 204. Mohtasib et al. [para. 0023; Fig. 2]);
transmit, to a user device, instructions for a user interface (UI) including one or more input elements; (Task records can be generated within the repository 224 in response to input data received at the device 116 (e.g., via the input device 216), and/or in response to messages received at the device 116 from other computing devices, defining tasks to be performed in the facility. The task records are created without allocated workers, and workers are allocated to tasks via performance of the method 300. Mohtasib et al. [para. 0033-0035]);
receive, from the user device and based on the one or more input elements, a data structure representing a project associated with a technical request; (Each task record defines attributes of a corresponding task. … Further example task attributes defined in the task record can include a skill set required for completion of the task. The skill set attribute can include selected ones of predefined skill identifiers, such as an identifier corresponding to a forklift certification, an identifier corresponding to a managerial access level, or the like. Mohtasib et al. [para. 0034]. … the computing device 116 is configured to obtain a plurality of worker profiles corresponding to workers available to perform the tasks obtained at block. … Each worker profile can include various worker attributes. Mohtasib et al. [para. 0035]);
extract one or more keywords from the data structure; extract one or more properties from the data structure; determine a set of users for the project, based on applying the one or more keywords and the one or more properties to a graph representation of a user space; (obtaining a plurality of task records defining tasks to be performed at a facility; obtaining a plurality of worker profiles corresponding to workers to perform the tasks; generating a bipartite sub-graph including: (i) a source node for each task record, each source node having a source feature vector encoding task attributes corresponding to the task record, (ii) a target node having a target feature vector encoding worker attributes corresponding to a first one of the worker profiles, and (iii) a set of edges connecting each source node with the target node, each edge having an edge feature vector derived by comparing the task attributes with the worker attributes; generating, via execution of a graph neural network, scores corresponding to the edges; based on the scores, allocating a first task to the first worker profile. Mohtasib et al. [para. 0014-0015, 0027 (pool of workers), 0045-0050]. … the computing device 116 is configured to generate graph data structures from the task records and the worker profiles, and process the graph data structures to allocate tasks to workers. Mohtasib et al. [para. 0031]);
generate a UI associated with the graph representation of the user space, wherein the graph representation includes a first node representing the project, and a second set of nodes representing the set of users, (… the device 116 is configured to generate a bipartite sub-graph including a source node for each of the unallocated task records obtained at block 305, and a target node for one of the worker records obtained at block 310. A bipartite graph is a graph whose nodes can be divided into two independent sets (tasks and workers, in this case). The edges of the graph connect nodes in one set with nodes in the other. Mohtasib et al. [para. 0036]).
Mohtasib et al. fails to explicitly disclose the system wherein a distance between the first node and the second set of nodes indicates ranking of the set of users in relation to the project, and wherein the ranking of the set of users in relation to the project is determined based on at least one of expertise of a user of the set of users, or availability of a user of the set of users. Etches et al. discloses these limitations. (… receiving, by one or more processors, a keyword associated with a service; accessing, by the one or more processors, a directed graph including a root node and nodes connected by edges, each node having a title, wherein the directed graph includes semantic paths, each semantic path being from the root node to a node having a title that at least partially matches the keyword, wherein the directed graph includes a first node having a title matching the keyword; identifying, by the one or more processors, a second node of the directed graph for each of service providers, each second node having a title matching a skill of a respective service provider; determining, by the one or more processors, a distance between the first node and each second node along the directed graph; and ranking, by the one or more processors, the service providers based at least in part on the distance between the first node and each second node. Etches et al. [para. 0004, 0064-0067]). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art of project management and skills based assignment before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the worker selection steps of Mohtasib et al. to include a distance between the first node and the second set of nodes indicates ranking of the set of users in relation to the project, and wherein the ranking of the set of users in relation to the project is determined based on at least one of expertise of a user of the set of users, or availability of a user of the set of users as disclosed by Etches et al. so that the service requester can select a service provider from among the identified service providers and based on the ranking of the service providers. (Etches et al. [col. Para. 0054]), in a manner that would have yielded predictable results to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
determine a set of statuses, corresponding to the set of users, associated with availability of the set of users; (Worker profiles can also include attributes such as an availability indicator, which can be a binary indication of whether the worker currently has a task allocated to them (e.g., that is still in progress). The availability indicator can be, for example “busy” or “available”, although a wide variety of other indicators can also be employed. The worker profile can also include a presence indicator, such as “online” or “offline”, indicating whether the client device 128 associated with the worker is in communication with a network deployed within the facility. …Still further, example worker attributes can include a time remaining until the worker's current shift ends. Mohtasib et al. [para. 0035-0038]);
transmit, to the user device, instructions for a UI including visual indicators for the set of users and the set of statuses,(The worker profile can also include a presence indicator, such as “online” or “offline”, indicating whether the client device 128 associated with the worker is in communication with a network deployed within the facility. …Still further, example worker attributes can include a time remaining until the worker's current shift ends. Mohtasib et al. [para. 0035-0038]);
Mohtasib et al. and Etches et al. combined fail to explicitly disclose the system, wherein the visual indicators are included in a pop-up window and include colored elements corresponding to different availabilities of the set of users. Waterman et al. discloses this limitation. (Each worker icon of the dynamically updated list of workers depicts various hours data, such as in closed shaped polygons, associated with the unique worker identifier corresponding to the worker icon. Such hours data can comprise total hours available, free hours, open hours, weekend hours, holiday hours, number of time slots, over-utilization, underutilization, vacation time, or other time relevant data. Such hours data can be colored or visually distinct to readily suggest information, such as red being over-utilized, green being underutilized, skill experience, age, or others. Waterman et al. [col. 19, lines 12-55; Fig. 5]. … one or more GUI control elements can comprise a widget, an accordion, an address bar, an adjustment handle, an alert dialog box, … a pop-up notification, a popover, …, a window, or any other visual element. Waterman et al. [col. 21, lines 30-55] ). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art of project management and data visualization before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the worker selection steps of Mohtasib et al. and Etches et al. combined to include the visual indicators are included in a pop-up window and include colored elements corresponding to different availabilities of the set of users as disclosed by Waterman et al. for a more efficient and faster system and method for processing large volume of data associated with a company's workforce, which would allow indexing, reviewing, and matching of appropriate workforce to specific projects in a more efficient manner than possible with human-intervention or conventional computer data-driven analysis (Waterman et al. [col. 1, lines 55-67; col. 2, lines 1-10]), as a matter of known data visualization design choice and in a manner that would have yielded predictable results to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Mohtasib et al. fails to explicitly disclose receive, from the user device, an indication of a selected user from the set of users. Etches et al. discloses this limitation. ( In some implementations, a ranked list of service providers is provided to the service requester for selection. The service requester can select a service provider from the ranked list. In some implementations, the list of service providers is ranked based on a distance between the node having a title matching with (e.g., the same as or similar to) a particular keyword and the node having a title matching with (e.g., the same as or similar to) a skill of each service provider. In some implementations, the ranking of service providers is also based on one or more other parameters, e.g., price, an average quality score of history assignments, delivery timeliness rate, etc.). Etches et al. [para. 0057]). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art of project management and skills based assignment before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the worker selection steps of Mohtasib et al. and Waterman et al. combined to include receive, from the user device, an indication of a selected user from the set of users as disclosed by Etches et al. so that the service requester can select a service provider from among the identified service providers and based on the ranking of the service providers. (Etches et al. [col. Para. 0054]), in a manner that would have yielded predictable results to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
and transmit a message addressed to the selected user. (The client devices 128 can be configured to present (e.g., via displays and/or other output devices) the task allocations defined in the messages 700 to their operators (e.g., workers such as employees 120), and/or prompt the operators to accept the allocated tasks. Upon acceptance, each client device 128 can be configured to send an acceptance message to the computing device 116, which can store an acceptance indication in conjunction with the corresponding task record 400. Mohtasib et al. [para. 0051-0051; Fig. 7]).
Regarding Amended Claim 2, Mohtasib et al., Etches et al., and Waterman et al. combined disclose the system, wherein the instructions for the UI including the visual indicators comprises instructions for the pop-up window. Waterman et al. discloses this limitation. (… one or more GUI control elements can comprise a widget, an accordion, an address bar, an adjustment handle, an alert dialog box, a breadcrumb, a button, a checkbox, a combo box, a context menu, a cycle button, a date picker, a dial, a dialog box, a disclosure widget, a drop-down list, a dropdown menu, an edit menu, a… a pop-up notification, a popover, …a search box, a sidebar, a slider, a software widget, a spinner, a splash screen, a status bar, a tab, a text box, a toolbar, a tree view, a window, or any other visual element. Waterman et al. [col. 21, lines 30-55]). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art of project management and data visualization before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the worker selection steps of Mohtasib et al. and Etches et al. combined to include wherein the instructions for the UI including the visual indicators comprises instructions for a pop-up window as disclosed by Waterman et al. for a more efficient and faster system and method for processing large volume of data associated with a company's workforce, which would allow indexing, reviewing, and matching of appropriate workforce to specific projects in a more efficient manner than possible with human-intervention or conventional computer data-driven analysis (Waterman et al. [col. 1, lines 55-67; col. 2, lines 1-10]), in a manner that would have yielded predictable results to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Regarding Claim 3, CANCELED.
Regarding Amended Claim 4, Mohtasib et al., Etches et al., and Waterman et al. combined disclose the system, wherein the one or more properties include subject matter associated with the project, a filename associated with the project, or a deadline associated with the project. ( Data defining a task can include a task name or instruction (e.g., open a cashier aisle, clean a spill, restock an item 112, or the like), an expected task duration, and a task priority (e.g., from critical or high-priority to best-effort or low priority, traversing any suitable number of graduations). Other data defining a task can include skill requirements for performing the task (e.g., a forklift operator certification), a task location (e.g., coordinates in the system 132 and/or identifier of an aisle 104), and the like. Mohtasib et al. [para. 0029]).
Regarding Claim 5, Mohtasib et al., Etches et al., and Waterman et al. combined disclose the system, wherein the one or more processors, to determine the set of statuses, are configured to: determine which users, in the set of users, are currently online; and determine a most recent active time for at least one user in the set of users. (Each worker profile can also include an availability indicator, corresponding to whether or not the worker is currently performing a task. In some examples, a worker profile can include an activity indicator, corresponding to whether the worker (e.g., the client device 128, in the case of human workers 120) is online or offline. Worker profiles can also include timing information, such as a time remaining until the end of the worker's current shift in the case of an employee 120, and/or time remaining until a battery charging operation in the case of a robot 124. Mohtasib et al. [para. 0031, 0041]).
Regarding Claim 6, Mohtasib et al., Etches et al., and Waterman et al. combined disclose the system, wherein the one or more processors, to determine the set of statuses, are configured to: determine an expected schedule for each user in the set of users. Waterman et al. discloses this limitation. ( Each of the worker profiles contains at least a worker identifier, an identified worker skill set, and a work schedule, which may contain an open slot. Each of the project profiles contains a project identifier, a desired project skill set, and a desired timeframe for the desired project skill set. A recommendation engine generates a recommendation based on such processing, such as available worker capacity and desired skills within a requested timeframe. Waterman et al. [col. 6, lines 15-40]). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art of project management and availability based worker assignment before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the worker selection steps of Mohtasib et al. and Etches et al. combined to include one or more processors, to determine the set of statuses, are configured to: determine an expected schedule for each user in the set of users as disclosed by Waterman et al. for a more efficient and faster system and method for processing large volume of data associated with a company's workforce, which would allow indexing, reviewing, and matching of appropriate workforce to specific projects in a more efficient manner than possible with human-intervention or conventional computer data-driven analysis (Waterman et al. [col. 1, lines 55-67; col. 2, lines 1-10]), in a manner that would have yielded predictable results to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Regarding Claim 7, Mohtasib et al., Etches et al., and Waterman et al. combined disclose the system, wherein the one or more processors, to determine the set of statuses, are configured to: determine a current workload for each user in the set of users. Waterman et al. discloses this limitation. (The server may also receive the worker data from an employee's schedule, whether manually entered or maintained by the worker co-worker or supervisor. Additionally or alternatively, such population of data can also be from a groupware calendar data source, such as Microsoft Exchange® or Microsoft SharePoint®. The worker work schedule can contain one or more open time slots, which are dynamically updated via a network-source. Waterman et al. [col. 11, lines 30-40]. … for efficiency purposes, the server can be used to manage utilization of the worker profile datasets such that an over-utilization message can be generated and communicated to a client over a network. The over-utilization message can be informative of an over-utilization of a worker associated with the unique worker identifier. The one or more reports can report on or be based on the over-utilization message. For example, the over-utilization message can be informative that a worker associated with the unique worker identifier is over-utilized 7 out of 8 hours on a daily basis over last 2. Waterman et al. [col. 16, lines 58-67; col. 17, lines 1-25]). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art of project management and availability based worker assignment before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the worker selection steps of Mohtasib et al. and Etches et al. combined to include the one or more processors, to determine the set of statuses, are configured to: determine a current workload for each user in the set of users as disclosed by Waterman et al. for a more efficient and faster system and method for processing large volume of data associated with a company's workforce, which would allow indexing, reviewing, and matching of appropriate workforce to specific projects in a more efficient manner than possible with human-intervention or conventional computer data-driven analysis (Waterman et al. [col. 1, lines 55-67; col. 2, lines 1-10]), in a manner that would have yielded predictable results to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Regarding Amended Claim 8, Mohtasib et al. discloses a method of applying graph representations of user spaces, comprising: (… method in a computing device, comprising: obtaining a plurality of task records defining tasks to be performed at a facility; obtaining a plurality of worker profiles corresponding to workers to perform the tasks; generating a bipartite sub-graph including:… an edge feature vector derived by comparing the task attributes with the worker attributes. Mohtasib et al. [para. 0014-0016]);
receiving, from a user device, a data structure representing a project associated with a technical request; (Task records can be generated within the repository 224 in response to input data received at the device 116 (e.g., via the input device 216), and/or in response to messages received at the device 116 from other computing devices, defining tasks to be performed in the facility. The task records are created without allocated workers, and workers are allocated to tasks via performance of the method 300. Mohtasib et al. [para. 0033-0035]);
mapping the data structure to a graph representation of a user space to determine a set of users; (generating a bipartite sub-graph including: (i) a source node for each task record, each source node having a source feature vector encoding task attributes corresponding to the task record, (ii) a target node having a target feature vector encoding worker attributes corresponding to a first one of the worker profiles, and (iii) a set of edges connecting each source node with the target node, each edge having an edge feature vector derived by comparing the task attributes with the worker attributes; generating, via execution of a graph neural network, scores corresponding to the edges; based on the scores, allocating a first task to the first worker profile. Mohtasib et al. [para. 0014-0015, 0045-0050]. … The application 220 further includes a primary task allocator 220d, configured to allocate a pool of tasks (e.g., an initial pool of unallocated tasks, modified by the actions of the detector 220a, the detector 220b, and the handler 220c) to a pool of workers. As discussed below, the allocator 220d implements a bipartite graph neural network (BGNN) to generate task allocations. Mohtasib et al. [para. 0027]. … the computing device 116 is configured to generate graph data structures from the task records and the worker profiles, and process the graph data structures to allocate tasks to workers. Mohtasib et al. [para. 0031]);
generating a user interface (UI) associated with the graph representation of the user space, wherein the graph representation includes a first node representing the project, and a second set of nodes representing the set of users, (… the device 116 is configured to generate a bipartite sub-graph including a source node for each of the unallocated task records obtained at block 305, and a target node for one of the worker records obtained at block 310. A bipartite graph is a graph whose nodes can be divided into two independent sets (tasks and workers, in this case). The edges of the graph connect nodes in one set with nodes in the other. Mohtasib et al. [para. 0036]).
Mohtasib et al. fails to explicitly disclose steps wherein a distance between the first node and the second set of nodes indicates ranking of the set of users in relation to the project, and wherein the ranking of the set of users in relation to the project is determined based on at least one of expertise of a user of the set of users, or availability of a user of the set of users. Etches et al. discloses these limitations. (… receiving, by one or more processors, a keyword associated with a service; accessing, by the one or more processors, a directed graph including a root node and nodes connected by edges, each node having a title, wherein the directed graph includes semantic paths, each semantic path being from the root node to a node having a title that at least partially matches the keyword, wherein the directed graph includes a first node having a title matching the keyword; identifying, by the one or more processors, a second node of the directed graph for each of service providers, each second node having a title matching a skill of a respective service provider; determining, by the one or more processors, a distance between the first node and each second node along the directed graph; and ranking, by the one or more processors, the service providers based at least in part on the distance between the first node and each second node. Etches et al. [para. 0004, 0064-0067]). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art of project management and skills based assignment before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the worker selection steps of Mohtasib et al. to include a distance between the first node and the second set of nodes indicates ranking of the set of users in relation to the project, and wherein the ranking of the set of users in relation to the project is determined based on at least one of expertise of a user of the set of users, or availability of a user of the set of users as disclosed by Etches et al. so that the service requester can select a service provider from among the identified service providers and based on the ranking of the service providers. (Etches et al. [col. Para. 0054]), in a manner that would have yielded predictable results to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
determining a set of statuses, corresponding to the set of users, associated with availability of the set of users; (Worker profiles can also include attributes such as an availability indicator, which can be a binary indication of whether the worker currently has a task allocated to them (e.g., that is still in progress). The availability indicator can be, for example “busy” or “available”, although a wide variety of other indicators can also be employed. The worker profile can also include a presence indicator, such as “online” or “offline”, indicating whether the client device 128 associated with the worker is in communication with a network deployed within the facility. …Still further, example worker attributes can include a time remaining until the worker's current shift ends. Mohtasib et al. [para. 0035-0038]);
transmitting, to the user device, instructions for a UI including visual indicators for the set of users and the set of statuses; (The worker profile can also include a presence indicator, such as “online” or “offline”, indicating whether the client device 128 associated with the worker is in communication with a network deployed within the facility. …Still further, example worker attributes can include a time remaining until the worker's current shift ends. Mohtasib et al. [para. 0035-0038]);
Mohtasib et al. and Etches et al. combined fail to explicitly disclose a step wherein the visual indicators are included in a pop-up window and include colored elements corresponding to different availabilities of the set of users. Waterman et al. discloses this limitation. (Each worker icon of the dynamically updated list of workers depicts various hours data, such as in closed shaped polygons, associated with the unique worker identifier corresponding to the worker icon. Such hours data can comprise total hours available, free hours, open hours, weekend hours, holiday hours, number of time slots, over-utilization, underutilization, vacation time, or other time relevant data. Such hours data can be colored or visually distinct to readily suggest information, such as red being over-utilized, green being underutilized, skill experience, age, or others. Waterman et al. [col. 19, lines 12-55; Fig. 5]. … one or more GUI control elements can comprise a widget, an accordion, an address bar, an adjustment handle, an alert dialog box, … a pop-up notification, a popover, …, a window, or any other visual element. Waterman et al. [col. 21, lines 30-55] ). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art of project management and data visualization before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the worker selection steps of Mohtasib et al. and Etches et al. combined to include the visual indicators are included in a pop-up window and include colored elements corresponding to different availabilities of the set of users as disclosed by Waterman et al. for a more efficient and faster system and method for processing large volume of data associated with a company's workforce, which would allow indexing, reviewing, and matching of appropriate workforce to specific projects in a more efficient manner than possible with human-intervention or conventional computer data-driven analysis (Waterman et al. [col. 1, lines 55-67; col. 2, lines 1-10]), as a matter of known data visualization design choice and in a manner that would have yielded predictable results to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Mohtasib et al. fails to explicitly disclose receiving, from the user device, an indication of a selected user from the set of users. Etches et al. discloses this limitation. ( In some implementations, a ranked list of service providers is provided to the service requester for selection. The service requester can select a service provider from the ranked list. In some implementations, the list of service providers is ranked based on a distance between the node having a title matching with (e.g., the same as or similar to) a particular keyword and the node having a title matching with (e.g., the same as or similar to) a skill of each service provider. In some implementations, the ranking of service providers is also based on one or more other parameters, e.g., price, an average quality score of history assignments, delivery timeliness rate, etc.). Etches et al. [para. 0057]). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art of project management and skills based assignment before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the worker selection steps of Mohtasib et al. and Waterman et al. combined to include receiving, from the user device, an indication of a selected user from the set of users as disclosed by Etches et al. so that the service requester can select a service provider from among the identified service providers and based on the ranking of the service providers. (Etches et al. [col. Para. 0054]), in a manner that would have yielded predictable results to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
and transmitting a message addressed to the selected user. (The client devices 128 can be configured to present (e.g., via displays and/or other output devices) the task allocations defined in the messages 700 to their operators (e.g., workers such as employees 120), and/or prompt the operators to accept the allocated tasks. Upon acceptance, each client device 128 can be configured to send an acceptance message to the computing device 116, which can store an acceptance indication in conjunction with the corresponding task record 400. Mohtasib et al. [para. 0051-0051; Fig. 7]).
Regarding Claim 9, Mohtasib et al., Etches et al., and Waterman et al. combined disclose method, wherein the project comprises an information technology ticket, a feature suggestion, or a code pull request. Waterman et al. discloses this limitation. (In a large organization, employees, such as project managers, often seek access to various intra-organizational resources, such as subject matter experts to assist in various projects, such as information technology (IT) projects, finance projects, sales projects, or others. Waterman et al. [col. 1, lines 15-38]. … For example, in a context of programming skills, a desired worker skill can be as general as a C++ programming skill or a subset of such skill, such as a knowledge of objects in C++. Waterman et al. [col. 12, lines 14-40]). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art of project management and availability based worker assignment before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the worker selection steps of Mohtasib et al. and Etches et al. combined to include the project comprises an information technology ticket, a feature suggestion, or a code pull request as disclosed by Waterman et al. for a more efficient and faster system and method for processing large volume of data associated with a company's workforce, which would allow indexing, reviewing, and matching of appropriate workforce to specific projects in a more efficient manner than possible with human-intervention or conventional computer data-driven analysis (Waterman et al. [col. 1, lines 55-67; col. 2, lines 1-10]), in a manner that would have yielded predictable results to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Regarding Amended Claim 10, Mohtasib et al., Etches et al., and Waterman et al. combined disclose method, wherein the graph representation of the user space is generated based on a plurality of data structures, associated with complete projects, associated with the set of users. Waterman et al. discloses this limitation. (… the worker profile dataset and the project profile dataset are analyzed, by the server, based on the worker request. Such analysis may comprise generation of a ticket record dataset in a storage, such as the database used to store the worker profile dataset and the project profile dataset. The ticket record dataset can be embodied as, be a part of, or include a matrix, a queue, an array, a stack, a deck, a linked list, a table, a tree, or another other data structure or dataset. Waterman et al. [col. 13, lines 55-67]. …when the worker skill identifier is associated with a weight based on experience, then the recommendation engine can use such weight. For example, more experienced workers are more recommended or placed higher in a recommendation list based on the weight. For example, the recommendation engine can be configured to factor in history of assignment based on the associating such that the recommendation is able to predict based on a real-time trend or a history. Waterman et al. [col. 15, lines 5-30]). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art of project management and availability based worker assignment before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the worker selection steps of Mohtasib et al. and Etches et al. combined to include generating the graph representation of the user space based on a plurality of data structures, associated with complete projects, associated with the set of users as disclosed by Waterman et al. for a more efficient and faster system and method for processing large volume of data associated with a company's workforce, which would allow indexing, reviewing, and matching of appropriate workforce to specific projects in a more efficient manner than possible with human-intervention or conventional computer data-driven analysis (Waterman et al. [col. 1, lines 55-67; col. 2, lines 1-10]), in a manner that would have yielded predictable results to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Regarding Claim 11, Mohtasib et al., Etches et al., and Waterman et al. combined disclose method, wherein mapping the data structure to the graph representation comprises: selecting the set of users, represented as nodes within the graph representation, that are closest to a vectorized representation of the data structure. (… generating a bipartite sub-graph including: (i) a source node for each task record, each source node having a source feature vector encoding task attributes corresponding to the task record, (ii) a target node having a target feature vector encoding worker attributes corresponding to a first one of the worker profiles, and (iii) a set of edges connecting each source node with the target node, each edge having an edge feature vector derived by comparing the task attributes with the worker attributes; generating, via execution of a graph neural network, scores corresponding to the edges; based on the scores, allocating a first task to the first worker profile. Mohtasib et al. [para. 0014-0015, 0045-0050]).
Regarding Claim 12, Mohtasib et al., Etches et al., and Waterman et al. combined disclose method, wherein transmitting the message comprises: transmitting an email message or a text message addressed to the selected user. Waterman et al. discloses this limitation. (, the alert can comprise an email message, a chat message, a social network service message, a fax, a physical letter, a phone call, or any other communication medium. Waterman et al. [col. 16, lines 24-50]). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art of project management and availability based worker assignment before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the worker selection steps of Mohtasib et al. and Etches et al. combined to include transmitting the message comprises: transmitting an email message or a text message addressed to the selected user as disclosed by Waterman et al. for a more efficient and faster system and method for processing large volume of data associated with a company's workforce, which would allow indexing, reviewing, and matching of appropriate workforce to specific projects in a more efficient manner than possible with human-intervention or conventional computer data-driven analysis (Waterman et al. [col. 1, lines 55-67; col. 2, lines 1-10]), in a manner that would have yielded predictable results to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Regarding Claim 13, Mohtasib et al., Etches et al., and Waterman et al. combined disclose method, wherein transmitting the message comprises: transmitting instructions to modify a dashboard, associated with the selected user, to indicate the project. Waterman et al. discloses this limitation. (The server can be configured to assign a unique worker identifier to the unique project identifier based on a drag-and-drop gesture on the second network page in the second network browser presented via the second client, where the drag-and-drop gesture comprises dragging the worker icon from the dynamically updated list of workers toward the project icon. The server can be configured to dynamically adjust in real-time the dynamically updated list of workers based such assignment. The server can be configured to update the second network page on the second network browser via the second client over the network such that the worker icon is visually associated with the project icon. Waterman et al. [col. 16, lines 5-25]. … FIG. 4 shows a screenshot of an example embodiment of a graphical user interface page for a request management dashboard according to the present disclosure. The request management dashboard depicts links for an assigned inventory, a team calendar, a total assigned inventory, upcoming work, deadline approaching, and overdue inventory, where the inventory is defined via worker requests. An assignor can access the request management dashboard and select a worker request for processing. Waterman et al. [col. 19, lines 1-15]). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art of project management and availability based worker assignment before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the worker selection steps of Mohtasib et al. and Etches et al. combined to include transmitting instructions to modify a dashboard, associated with the selected user, to indicate the project as disclosed by Waterman et al. for a more efficient and faster system and method for processing large volume of data associated with a company's workforce, which would allow indexing, reviewing, and matching of appropriate workforce to specific projects in a more efficient manner than possible with human-intervention or conventional computer data-driven analysis (Waterman et al. [col. 1, lines 55-67; col. 2, lines 1-10]), in a manner that would have yielded predictable results to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Regarding Amended Claim 14, Mohtasib et al. discloses a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing a set of instructions for applying graph representations of user spaces, the set of instructions comprising: one or more instructions that, when executed by one or more processors of a device, cause the device to: The system 100 includes a computing device 116 configured to obtain task records that define tasks to be performed in the facility, and to allocate the tasks to workers deployed in the facility to perform the tasks. Mohtasib et al. [para. 0014-0017]. … The computing device 116 includes a processor 200 …, interconnected with a non-transitory computer readable storage medium, such as a memory 204. Mohtasib et al. [para. 0023; Fig. 2]. … embodiments may be comprised of … unique stored program instructions (including both software and firmware) that control the one or more processors to implement, in conjunction with certain non-processor circuits, some, most, or all of the functions of the method and/or apparatus described herein. Mohtasib et al. [para. 0069-0070]);
receive a plurality of data structures representing a plurality of projects associated with technology; (Each task record defines attributes of a corresponding task. … Further example task attributes defined in the task record can include a skill set required for completion of the task. The skill set attribute can include selected ones of predefined skill identifiers, such as an identifier corresponding to a forklift certification, an identifier corresponding to a managerial access level, or the like. Mohtasib et al. [para. 0034]. … the computing device 116 is configured to obtain a plurality of worker profiles corresponding to workers available to perform the tasks obtained at block. … Each worker profile can include various worker attributes. Mohtasib et al. [para. 0035]);
determine, for each data structure in the plurality of data structures, a corresponding set of users based on a graph representation of a user space; (obtaining a plurality of task records defining tasks to be performed at a facility; obtaining a plurality of worker profiles corresponding to workers to perform the tasks; generating a bipartite sub-graph including: (i) a source node for each task record, each source node having a source feature vector encoding task attributes corresponding to the task record, (ii) a target node having a target feature vector encoding worker attributes corresponding to a first one of the worker profiles, and (iii) a set of edges connecting each source node with the target node, each edge having an edge feature vector derived by comparing the task attributes with the worker attributes; generating, via execution of a graph neural network, scores corresponding to the edges; based on the scores, allocating a first task to the first worker profile. Mohtasib et al. [para. 0014-0015, 0027 (pool of workers), 0045-0050]. … the computing device 116 is configured to generate graph data structures from the task records and the worker profiles, and process the graph data structures to allocate tasks to workers. Mohtasib et al. [para. 0031]);
generate a user interface (UI) associated with the graph representation of the user space, wherein the graph representation includes a first node representing a project of the plurality of projects, and a second set of nodes representing the corresponding set of users (… the device 116 is configured to generate a bipartite sub-graph including a source node for each of the unallocated task records obtained at block 305, and a target node for one of the worker records obtained at block 310. A bipartite graph is a graph whose nodes can be divided into two independent sets (tasks and workers, in this case). The edges of the graph connect nodes in one set with nodes in the other. Mohtasib et al. [para. 0036]).
Mohtasib et al. fails to explicitly disclose steps wherein a distance between the first node and the second set of nodes indicates ranking of the set of users in relation to the project, and wherein the ranking of the set of users in relation to the project is determined based on at least one of expertise of a user of the corresponding set of users, or availability of a user of the corresponding set of users. Etches et al. discloses these limitations. (… receiving, by one or more processors, a keyword associated with a service; accessing, by the one or more processors, a directed graph including a root node and nodes connected by edges, each node having a title, wherein the directed graph includes semantic paths, each semantic path being from the root node to a node having a title that at least partially matches the keyword, wherein the directed graph includes a first node having a title matching the keyword; identifying, by the one or more processors, a second node of the directed graph for each of service providers, each second node having a title matching a skill of a respective service provider; determining, by the one or more processors, a distance between the first node and each second node along the directed graph; and ranking, by the one or more processors, the service providers based at least in part on the distance between the first node and each second node. Etches et al. [para. 0004, 0064-0067]). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art of project management and skills based assignment before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the worker selection steps of Mohtasib et al. to include a distance between the first node and the second set of nodes indicates ranking of the set of users in relation to the project, and wherein the ranking of the set of users in relation to the project is determined based on at least one of expertise of a user of the corresponding set of users, or availability of a user of the corresponding set of users as disclosed by Etches et al. so that the service requester can select a service provider from among the identified service providers and based on the ranking of the service providers. (Etches et al. [col. Para. 0054]), in a manner that would have yielded predictable results to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
determine, for each corresponding set of users, an associated set of statuses indicating availability of the set of users; (Worker profiles can also include attributes such as an availability indicator, which can be a binary indication of whether the worker currently has a task allocated to them (e.g., that is still in progress). The availability indicator can be, for example “busy” or “available”, although a wide variety of other indicators can also be employed. The worker profile can also include a presence indicator, such as “online” or “offline”, indicating whether the client device 128 associated with the worker is in communication with a network deployed within the facility. …Still further, example worker attributes can include a time remaining until the worker's current shift ends. Mohtasib et al. [para. 0035-0038]);
transmit instructions for a UI including visual indicators for the corresponding set of users and the set of statuses, (The worker profile can also include a presence indicator, such as “online” or “offline”, indicating whether the client device 128 associated with the worker is in communication with a network deployed within the facility. …Still further, example worker attributes can include a time remaining until the worker's current shift ends. Mohtasib et al. [para. 0035-0038]);
Mohtasib et al. and Etches et al. combined fail to explicitly disclose wherein the visual indicators are included in a pop-up window and include colored elements corresponding to different availabilities of the corresponding set of users. Waterman et al. discloses this limitation. (Each worker icon of the dynamically updated list of workers depicts various hours data, such as in closed shaped polygons, associated with the unique worker identifier corresponding to the worker icon. Such hours data can comprise total hours available, free hours, open hours, weekend hours, holiday hours, number of time slots, over-utilization, underutilization, vacation time, or other time relevant data. Such hours data can be colored or visually distinct to readily suggest information, such as red being over-utilized, green being underutilized, skill experience, age, or others. Waterman et al. [col. 19, lines 12-55; Fig. 5]. … one or more GUI control elements can comprise a widget, an accordion, an address bar, an adjustment handle, an alert dialog box, … a pop-up notification, a popover, …, a window, or any other visual element. Waterman et al. [col. 21, lines 30-55] ). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art of project management and data visualization before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the worker selection steps of Mohtasib et al. and Etches et al. combined to include the visual indicators are included in a pop-up window and include colored elements corresponding to different availabilities of the corresponding set of users as disclosed by Waterman et al. for a more efficient and faster system and method for processing large volume of data associated with a company's workforce, which would allow indexing, reviewing, and matching of appropriate workforce to specific projects in a more efficient manner than possible with human-intervention or conventional computer data-driven analysis (Waterman et al. [col. 1, lines 55-67; col. 2, lines 1-10]), as a matter of known data visualization design choice and in a manner that would have yielded predictable results to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
and transmit, for each data structure, a message addressed to a top-ranked user in the corresponding set of users. (The client devices 128 can be configured to present (e.g., via displays and/or other output devices) the task allocations defined in the messages 700 to their operators (e.g., workers such as employees 120), and/or prompt the operators to accept the allocated tasks. Upon acceptance, each client device 128 can be configured to send an acceptance message to the computing device 116, which can store an acceptance indication in conjunction with the corresponding task record 400. Mohtasib et al. [para. 0051-0051; Fig. 7]).
Regarding Claim 15, Mohtasib et al., Etches et al., and Waterman et al. combined disclose the non-transitory computer-readable medium, wherein the one or more instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, further cause the device to: receive, from an administrator device, a confirmation, wherein each message is transmitted in response to the confirmation. (FIG. 7 illustrates an example performance of block 335, e.g., in which the computing device 116 sends a message 700-5 (containing data for the task corresponding to the source node 412-5) to a client device 128-1 (corresponding to the worker that matches the target node 416-1), a message 700-2 to a client device 128-2, and a message 700-4 to a client device 128-3. … Upon acceptance, each client device 128 can be configured to send an acceptance message to the computing device 116, which can store an acceptance indication in conjunction with the corresponding task record 400. Mohtasib et al. [para. 0050-0051]).
Regarding Claim 16, Mohtasib et al., Etches et al., and Waterman et al. combined disclose the non-transitory computer-readable medium, wherein the one or more instructions, that cause the device to receive the plurality of data structures, cause the device to: transmit, to a ticket system, a request for tickets that are incomplete; and receive the plurality of data structures from the ticket system in response to the request. (… the device 116 is configured to obtain a plurality of task records each defining a task to be performed at the facility. The task records obtained at block 305, e.g., from the repository 224, define unallocated tasks, e.g., tasks that have not yet been allocated to a worker to be performed by that worker. … Mohtasib et al. [para. 0033]. … or a negative determination at block 910, at block 920 the completion detector 220b is configured to determine whether any of the tasks in the initial set from block 905 have been allocated and accepted, but not yet completed. Mohtasib et al. [para. 0061]).
Regarding Claim 17, Mohtasib et al., Etches et al., and Waterman et al. combined disclose the non-transitory computer-readable medium, wherein the one or more instructions, that cause the device to receive the plurality of data structures, cause the device to: receive the plurality of data structures from an administrator device. (… the computing device 116 is configured to generate graph data structures from the task records and the worker profiles, and process the graph data structures to allocate tasks to workers. Mohtasib et al. [para. 0031]. … the device 116 is configured to obtain a plurality of task records each defining a task to be performed at the facility. The task records obtained at block 305, e.g., from the repository 224, … The worker profiles can be retrieved from the repository 228. Mohtasib et al. [para. 0032-0035]).
Regarding Claim 18, Mohtasib et al., Etches et al., and Waterman et al. combined disclose the non-transitory computer-readable medium, wherein the one or more instructions, that cause the device to transmit the message, cause the device to: transmit instructions to modify a dashboard associated with the top-ranked user. Waterman et al. discloses this limitation. (The server can be configured to assign a unique worker identifier to the unique project identifier based on a drag-and-drop gesture on the second network page in the second network browser presented via the second client, where the drag-and-drop gesture comprises dragging the worker icon from the dynamically updated list of workers toward the project icon. The server can be configured to dynamically adjust in real-time the dynamically updated list of workers based such assignment. The server can be configured to update the second network page on the second network browser via the second client over the network such that the worker icon is visually associated with the project icon. Waterman et al. [col. 16, lines 5-25]. … FIG. 4 shows a screenshot of an example embodiment of a graphical user interface page for a request management dashboard according to the present disclosure. The request management dashboard depicts links for an assigned inventory, a team calendar, a total assigned inventory, upcoming work, deadline approaching, and overdue inventory, where the inventory is defined via worker requests. An assignor can access the request management dashboard and select a worker request for processing. Waterman et al. [col. 19, lines 1-15]). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art of project management and availability based worker assignment before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the worker selection steps of Mohtasib et al. and Etches et al. combined to include transmit instructions to modify a dashboard associated with the top-ranked user as disclosed by Waterman et al. for a more efficient and faster system and method for processing large volume of data associated with a company's workforce, which would allow indexing, reviewing, and matching of appropriate workforce to specific projects in a more efficient manner than possible with human-intervention or conventional computer data-driven analysis (Waterman et al. [col. 1, lines 55-67; col. 2, lines 1-10]), in a manner that would have yielded predictable results to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Regarding Claim 19, Mohtasib et al., Etches et al., and Waterman et al. combined disclose the non-transitory computer-readable medium, wherein the one or more instructions, that cause the device to transmit the message, cause the device to: transmit an email message or a text message addressed to the top-ranked user. Waterman et al. discloses this limitation. (… the alert can comprise an email message, a chat message, a social network service message, a fax, a physical letter, a phone call, or any other communication medium. Waterman et al. [col. 16, lines 24-50]). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art of project management and availability based worker assignment before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the worker selection steps of Mohtasib et al. and Etches et al. combined to include a step to transmit an email message or a text message addressed to the top-ranked user as disclosed by Waterman et al. for a more efficient and faster system and method for processing large volume of data associated with a company's workforce, which would allow indexing, reviewing, and matching of appropriate workforce to specific projects in a more efficient manner than possible with human-intervention or conventional computer data-driven analysis (Waterman et al. [col. 1, lines 55-67; col. 2, lines 1-10]), in a manner that would have yielded predictable results to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Regarding Claim 20, Mohtasib et al., Etches et al., and Waterman et al. combined disclose the non-transitory computer-readable medium, wherein the plurality of projects include an information technology ticket, a feature suggestion, or a code pull request. Waterman et al. discloses this limitation. (In a large organization, employees, such as project managers, often seek access to various intra-organizational resources, such as subject matter experts to assist in various projects, such as information technology (IT) projects, finance projects, sales projects, or others. Waterman et al. [col. 1, lines 15-38]. … For example, in a context of programming skills, a desired worker skill can be as general as a C++ programming skill or a subset of such skill, such as a knowledge of objects in C++. Waterman et al. [col. 12, lines 14-40]). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art of project management and availability based worker assignment before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the worker selection steps of Mohtasib et al. and Etches et al. combined to include wherein the plurality of projects include an information technology ticket, a feature suggestion, or a code pull request as disclosed by Waterman et al. for a more efficient and faster system and method for processing large volume of data associated with a company's workforce, which would allow indexing, reviewing, and matching of appropriate workforce to specific projects in a more efficient manner than possible with human-intervention or conventional computer data-driven analysis (Waterman et al. [col. 1, lines 55-67; col. 2, lines 1-10]), in a manner that would have yielded predictable results to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Regarding New Claim 21, Mohtasib et al., Etches et al., and Waterman et al. combined disclose the system, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to: transmit a message to a top-ranked user of the set of users. (The client devices 128 can be configured to present (e.g., via displays and/or other output devices) the task allocations defined in the messages 700 to their operators (e.g., workers such as employees 120), and/or prompt the operators to accept the allocated tasks. Upon acceptance, each client device 128 can be configured to send an acceptance message to the computing device 116, which can store an acceptance indication in conjunction with the corresponding task record 400. Mohtasib et al. [para. 0051-0051; Fig. 7]).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to Applicant’s disclosure:
Chu et al. (US 2021/0382954) - The sequences of instructions include instructions to: query a user profiling system with a skillset provided by a requestor; identify a target user based on results of the query, the target user associated with the skillset; identify a network path linking the requestor with the target user, the network path comprising one or more links between nodes of a user network, the nodes associated with users, the users including the requestor, the target user, and one or more other users; identify a preferred communication channel associated with the target user and/or the one or more other users, based on the results of the query; and provide a recommendation to the requester, the recommendation comprising the target user, the preferred communication channel, and the network path.
Bukow (US 6,567,784) - A method of matching projects and workers using both mandatory, or binary, characteristics and quantitative characteristics is described. The projects and workers have a number of characteristics that are symmetric. For example, the project has an activity characteristic that defines what is to be done and the worker has an activity characteristic describing what she/he wants to do. Project creators and workers can request matching workers and projects. he matching process itself occurs in two stages. In the first stage, the mandatory characteristics are considered. Only workers, or projects, meeting the mandatory characteristics are selected for further evaluation at the next stage. At the second stage, the quantitative characteristics are evaluated for the workers, or projects. The result is a subset of the total number of workers, or projects, matching the project criterion, or worker needs, ranked based on the quantitative characteristics.
Hull et al. (US 2015/0317073) - computer-implemented method for assigning a task based on content presented in a data feed are presented. A data feed that includes a set of content items is presented. Each of the content items included in the data feed may include a graphical user interface element capable of invoking task assignment functionality with respect to each content item. A task based on a content item presented in the data feed may be created and assigned to a selected user in response to receiving a selection of the graphical user interface element. The method may further include generating an individual status report for the user that includes every task assigned to the user.
Parikh (US 2021/0035069) - Data structures, graphical user interfaces, and computer-implemented processes for automation of project management. In an embodiment, data structures are used to associate items with colors and elements. A virtual design board in a graphical user interface can then be automatically or semi-automatically populated with items that are associated with selected color(s) and/or element(s). A user may associate one or more of the populated items with a project.
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 nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
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/L.G.K/Examiner, Art Unit 3623 /RUTAO WU/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3623
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