DETAILED ACTION
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 12/01/2025 has been entered.
Status of Claims
Claims 1, 3, 4, 7-10, 12, 13, and 16-24 submitted on 03/24/2026 are pending and have been examined. Claims 1, 4, 7, 10, and 20 have been amended. Claims 2, 5, 6, 11, 14, and 15 have been cancelled. Claims 23 and 24 are newly added.
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 .
Priority
No foreign priority or domestic benefit was claimed by the applicant and the application has been examined with respect to its filing date of 04/13/2023.
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, 3, 4, 7-10, 12, 13, and 16-24 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 because the claimed invention is directed to a judicial exception without significantly more. The claims recite an abstract idea. This judicial exception is not integrated into a practical application. The claim(s) do not include additional elements that are sufficient to amount to significantly more than the judicial exception.
Step 1
Claims 1, 3, 4, 7-9, 20, 21 and 23 are directed to a machine and claims 10, 12, 13, 16-19, 22, and 24 are directed to a process (see MPEP 2106.03).
Step 2A, Prong 1
Claim 1 recites at least the following limitations that recite an abstract idea:
a system for optimizing a quantity of products for display, the system comprising:
receive, a scan event comprising at least one identifier associated with a first quantity of products, the scan event comprising an indication that the first quantity of products was received at a first zone, wherein a portion of the first quantity of products are a product type, and wherein the first zone is configured to store inbound products;
retrieve, a value representing a second quantity of products of the product type that are stored at a second zone, wherein the second zone is configured to store stowed products;
determine a time window during which the scan event occurred;
if the scan event occurred during a first time window:
determine a first total quantity of products, wherein the determined first total quantity of products includes a value representing the portion of the first quantity of products and the value representing the second quantity of products; and
modify a first table based on the determined first total quantity of products;
if the scan event occurred during a second time window, the second time window being different from the first time window:
determine a second total quantity of products, wherein the determined second total quantity of products includes only the value representing the second quantity of products; and
modify a second table based on the determined second total quantity of products;
generate a graphical user interface, a product availability and either the first total quantity of products or the second total quantity of products; and
transmit the graphical user interface to a customer.
Claim 20 recites at least the following limitations that recite an abstract idea:
a system for optimizing a quantity of products for display, the system comprising:
receive, a scan event comprising at least one identifier associated with a first quantity of products, the scan event comprising an indication that the first quantity of products was received at a first zone and location information associated with a location of the first quantity of products, wherein a portion of the first quantity of products are a product type, and wherein the first zone is configured to store inbound products;
retrieve, a value representing a second quantity of products of the product type that are stored at a second zone, wherein the second zone is configured to store stowed products;
determine a time window during which the scan event occurred;
if the scan event occurred during a first time window:
determine a first total quantity of products, wherein the determined first total quantity of products includes the value representing the portion of the first quantity of products and the value representing the second quantity of products; and
modify a first table based on the determined first total quantity of products;
if the scan event occurred during a second time window, the second time window being different from the first time window:
determine a second total quantity of products, wherein the determined second total quantity of products includes only the value representing the second quantity of products; and
modify a second table based on the determined second total quantity of products;
generate a graphical user interface, a product availability and either the first total quantity of products or the second total quantity of products;
transmit the graphical user interface to a customer;
receive, via the graphical user interface, an order from the customer device, wherein the order includes order information including a selected quantity of the product type;
assign a priority stow indication to a first at least one product of the first quantity of products based on the order information; and
transmit the location information for retrieving the first at least one product.
The above limitation, under its broadest reasonable interpretation, falls within the “Certain Methods of Organizing Human Activity” grouping of abstract ideas, enumerated in MPEP 2106.04(a)(2)(II), in that it recites a commercial interaction. See ¶0004 of the instant specification where it is discussed that the invention improves the availability of products to be sold to a customer. Claim 10 recites similar limitations as claim 1.
Thus, under Prong 1 of Step 2A, claims 1, 10, and 20 recite an abstract idea.
Step 2A, Prong 2
Claim 1 includes the following additional elements that are bolded:
a computer-implemented system for optimizing a quantity of products for display on a graphical user interface, the system comprising: a memory storing instructions; and at least one processor configured to execute the instructions to:
receive, from at least one mobile device, a scan event comprising at least one identifier associated with a first quantity of products, the scan event comprising an indication that the first quantity of products was received at a first zone, wherein a portion of the first quantity of products are a product type, and wherein the first zone is configured to store inbound products;
retrieve, from a database, a value representing a second quantity of products of the product type that are stored at a second zone, wherein the second zone is configured to store stowed products;
determine a time window during which the scan event occurred;
if the scan event occurred during a first time window:
determine a first total quantity of products, wherein the determined first total quantity of products includes a value representing the portion of the first quantity of products and the value representing the second quantity of products; and
modify a first table of the database based on the determined first total quantity of products;
if the scan event occurred during a second time window, the second time window being different from the first time window:
determine a second total quantity of products, wherein the determined second total quantity of products includes only the value representing the second quantity of products; and
modify a second table of the database based on the determined second total quantity of products;
generate a graphical user interface, the graphical user interface comprising a product availability and either the first total quantity of products or the second total quantity of products; and
transmit the graphical user interface to a customer device.
Claims 10 and 20 include the same additional elements as claim 1.
The additional elements recited in claims 1, 10, and 20 merely invoke such elements as a tool to perform the abstract idea and generally link the use of the abstract idea to a particular technological environment of databases and graphical user interfaces (see MPEP 2106.05(f) and MPEP 2106.05(h). These additional elements are described at a high level in Applicant’s specification without any meaningful detail about their structure or configuration (see Fig. 5, ¶0073, and ¶¶0092-0098).
As such, under Prong 2 of Step 2A, when considered both individually and as a whole, the additional elements do not integrate the judicial exception into a practical application and, thus, claims 1, 10, and 20 are directed to an abstract idea.
Step 2B
As noted above, while the recitation of the additional elements in independent claims 1, 10, and 20 are acknowledged, claims 1, 10, and 20 merely invoke such additional elements as a tool to perform the abstract idea and generally link the use of the abstract idea to a particular technological environment (see MPEP 2106.05(f) and MPEP 2106.05(h)).
Even when considered as an ordered combination, the additional elements of claim 1, 10, and 20 do not add anything that is not already present when they are considered individually. Therefore, under Step 2B, there are no meaningful limitations in claims 1, 10, and 20 that transform the judicial exception into a patent eligible application such that the claims amount to significantly more than the judicial exception itself (see MPEP 2106.05).
As such, independent claims 1, 10, and 20 are ineligible.
Dependent claims 3, 4, 7-9, 12, 13, and 16-18, and 21-24 when analyzed as a whole, are held to be patent ineligible under 35 U.S.C. 101 because they do not add “significantly more” to the abstract idea. More specifically, dependent claims 3, 4, 7-9, 12, 13, and 16-18, and 21-24 merely further define the abstract limitations of claims 1, 10, and 20 or provide further embellishments of the limitations recited in independent claims 1, 10, and 20. Claims 3, 4, 7-9, 12, 13, and 16-18, and 21-24 do not introduce any further additional elements. Thus, dependent claims 3, 4, 7-9, 12, 13, and 16-18, and 21-24 are ineligible.
Furthermore, it is noted that certain dependent claims recite additional elements supplemental to those recited in independent claims 1, 10, and 20: a web page (claim 19). However, these elements do not integrate the abstract idea into a practical application because they merely amount to using a computer to apply the abstract idea to a particular technological environment or field of use and thus do not act to integrate the abstract idea into a practical application of the abstract idea. Additionally, the additional elements do not amount to significantly more because they merely amount to using a computer to apply the abstract idea and amount to no more than a general link of the use of the abstract idea to a particular technological environment.
Thus, dependent claim 19 is ineligible.
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. This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
Claim(s) 1, 3, 7-10, 12, 16-19, 23, and 24 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Sayan et al. (US 2012/0191817 A1 [previously cited]) in view of Riscalla et al. (US 10,726,386 B1 [previously cited]) in view of Groomes et al. (US 2022/0245369 A1).
Regarding Claim 1, Sayan et al., hereinafter, Sayan, discloses a computer-implemented system for optimizing a quantity of products for display on a graphical user interface, the system comprising: a memory storing instructions; and at least one processor configured to execute the instructions to (Fig. 3; ¶0089[The wholesaler device can scan the invoice barcode to initialize a bill of lading with the quantities and identities of products that were ordered, and then the quantities received can be automatically updated as each unit of goods is scanned by the device] in view of ¶0068[When a product tag is scanned by either the supplier device or the consumer device, the server 301 can respond with freshness information, which is displayed on the scanning device by the corresponding application (e.g., the supplier application or the consumer application). The freshness information can include a timestamp of when that product was shipped, an expiration date, product information, etc.]):
receive, from at least one mobile device, a scan event comprising at least one identifier associated with a first quantity of products, the scan event comprising an indication that the first quantity of products was received at a first zone, wherein a portion of the first quantity of products are a product type, and wherein the first zone is configured to store inbound products (Fig. 3; ¶¶0088-0089[The wholesaler device can scan the invoice barcode to initialize a bill of lading with the quantities and identities of products that were ordered, and then the quantities received can be automatically updated as each unit of goods is scanned by the device] in view of ¶0077[when an item of goods is scanned by the supplier device 110, the supplier application can send the location of the supplier device 110 and the tracking code to the server 301.]; Examiner notes that identities of products are comparable to product types and the location of the supplier device at the time of scanning ordered items is comparable to the first zone for storing inbound products);
retrieve, from a database, a value representing a second quantity of products of the product type that are stored at a second zone, (Figs. 3-4; ¶¶0082-0088[the inventory services 413 of the back-end application 404 can be used to maintain the inventory… The manufacturer can access the inventory using a personal computer that is attached to the internet or directly through the supplier application on a supplier device 110.] in view of ¶0081[Each record may include product identifying information (e.g., the product identifier, the tracking code, etc.) and origin information (e.g., location of the manufacturer, the manufacturer identifier, time/date of manufacture, time/date of shipment, origin of raw materials used in product, etc.)]; Examiner notes that accessing the inventory is comparable to retrieving a second quantity of products at a second zone and product identifying information is comparable to a value representing the second quantity of products);
the scan event occurred (Fig. 3; ¶¶0088-0089[The wholesaler device can scan the invoice barcode to initialize a bill of lading with the quantities and identities of products that were ordered, and then the quantities received can be automatically updated as each unit of goods is scanned by the device]);
if the scan event occurred: determine a first total quantity of products, wherein the determined first total quantity of products includes a value representing the portion of the first quantity of products and the value representing the second quantity of products (¶¶0089[For example, each time a unit of goods is scanned by the wholesale device, the server 301 can add that unit to the inventory of the corresponding wholesaler. The wholesaler can access its inventory in a manner similar to that described above for the manufacturer… The wholesaler device can scan the invoice barcode to initialize a bill of lading with the quantities and identities of products that were ordered, and then the quantities received can be automatically updated as each unit of goods is scanned by the device]; Examiner notes that adding received units to the inventory is comparable to determining a total quantity of products); and
modify a first table of the database based on the determined first total quantity of products (¶¶0089[For example, each time a unit of goods is scanned by the wholesale device, the server 301 can add that unit to the inventory of the corresponding wholesaler. The wholesaler can access its inventory in a manner similar to that described above for the manufacturer… The wholesaler device can scan the invoice barcode to initialize a bill of lading with the quantities and identities of products that were ordered, and then the quantities received can be automatically updated as each unit of goods is scanned by the device]; Examiner notes that adding received units to the inventory is comparable to determining a total quantity of products);
if the scan event occurred: determine a second total quantity of products, wherein the determined second total quantity of products includes only the value representing the second quantity of products (Figs. 3-4; ¶¶0082-0088[the inventory services 413 of the back-end application 404 can be used to maintain the inventory… The manufacturer can access the inventory using a personal computer that is attached to the internet or directly through the supplier application on a supplier device 110.] in view of ¶0081[Each record may include product identifying information (e.g., the product identifier, the tracking code, etc.) and origin information (e.g., location of the manufacturer, the manufacturer identifier, time/date of manufacture, time/date of shipment, origin of raw materials used in product, etc.)]; Examiner notes that accessing the inventory is comparable to retrieving a second quantity of products at a second zone and product identifying information is comparable to a value representing the second quantity of products); and
modify a second table of the database based on the determined second total quantity of products (Fig. 3; ¶0082[The inventory services 413 can update the inventory based on the received manufacturer messages and knowledge of the current inventory (e.g., from access to an inventory server of the manufacturer)] in view of ¶0088[For example, each time a unit of goods is scanned by the wholesale device, the server 301 can add that unit to the inventory of the corresponding wholesaler. The wholesaler can access its inventory in a manner similar to that described above for the manufacturer.]; Examiner notes adding to the inventory is comparable to modifying the database);
generate a graphical user interface, the graphical user interface comprising a product availability and either the first total quantity of products or the second total quantity of products (Figs. 7-8; ¶103[The consumer application can also be used to add the scanned item or a product like the scanned item to a virtual shopping cart, which enables the prior scanned items to be purchased at a later time. When the consumer device 120 scans a product tag outside of a retail store, the consumer application can also display the above described product information. This product information can be personalized based on the current location of the user. For example, the product information may include a list of vendors within a pre-defined distance of the scanned location that carry the product.]); and
transmit the graphical user interface to a customer device Figs. 4, 5A, and 8; ¶0033[The computer server 301 includes a front-end application 401 and a back-end application 404. The front-end application 401 interfaces with an application of the supplier devices 110 and the consumer devices 120, and forwards requests from these devices to the back-end application 404. The computer server 301 can maintain dedicated portals for communicating with the supplier devices 110 and the consumer devices 120… The application on the consumer devices 120 (hereinafter referred to as the "consumer application") is able to communicate with the computer server 301 through the consumer cloud 102 via a second portal maintained by the computer server 301 that is distinct from the first portal]).
Although Sayan discloses retrieving a value representing products stored at a second zone Sayan does not explicitly disclose wherein the second zone is configured to store stowed products. However, Riscalla, et al., hereinafter, Riscalla teaches zones for storing different products (Col. 6, lines 14-21[after selecting a storage location were the user is, the user may scan a label of a package, a label mounted at the storage location where a specific item is intended to be stored]).
The system of Riscalla is applicable to the system of Sayan as they share characteristics and capabilities, namely, they are both targeted to inventory management. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system as disclosed by Sayan to include zones configured to store products and displaying a total quantity of products as taught by Riscalla. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to expand the system of Sayan in order to project future orders for supplies, to identify losses, such as waste or theft, and the like (Abstract).
Although Sayan discloses scanning events, Sayan in view of Riscalla does not explicitly teach to determine a time window during which the event occurs, event occurring during a first time window, and during a second time window, the second time window being different from the first time window.
However, Groomes et al., hereinafter, Groomes, teaches two separate time windows during which events occur (¶0064[When there is a simple 1:1 correlation between each of the RFID tags and location data instances (e.g., frequency with which the RFID data is generated is the same as the frequency with which the location data is generated), then the corresponding location data instance can simply be selected and associated with each of the RFID tags to provide the RFID-location data. However, when multiple location data instances occur within the time range for each RFID scan (or vice versa), then determinations can be made to identify the appropriate location data from that range for the RFID scans. For example, the location for each of the RFID scans at timestamp “10:02:04” can be determined from the five location data entries at timestamps “10:02:01.1,” “10:02:01.3,” “10:02:01.5,” “10:02:01.7,” and “10:02:01.9.” Any of a variety of techniques can be used to determine the location for these RFID scans, such as using the location for median data instance (e.g., using “11, 20” from median instance 10:02:01.5) within the range (e.g., 10:02:01.1-10:02:01.9), the mean location value (e.g., “10, 20”+“10, 20”+“11, 20”+“11, 20”+“11, 20”/5=10.6, 20) for the data instances within the range (e.g., 10:02:01.1-10:02:01.9), the mode of the location values (e.g., “11, 20”) within the range (e.g., 10:02:01.1-10:02:01.9), and/or other techniques.]).
The system of Groomes is applicable to the system of Sayan in view of Riscalla as they share characteristics and capabilities, namely, they are all targeted to inventory management. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system as taught by Sayan in view of Riscalla to include time windows as taught by Groomes. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to expand the system of Sayan in view of Riscalla for providing positioning information within indoor environments using RFID scans, such as providing product location information within a retail store (¶0002).
Regarding Claim 3, Sayan in view of Riscalla in view of Groomes teaches the computer-implemented system of claim 1, Sayan discloses wherein the scan event includes a indication that the first quantity of products is located in a zone other than the second zone (Fig. 3; ¶0089[The wholesaler device can scan the invoice barcode to initialize a bill of lading with the quantities and identities of products that were ordered, and then the quantities received can be automatically updated as each unit of goods is scanned by the device] in view of ¶0077[when an item of goods is scanned by the supplier device 110, the supplier application can send the location of the supplier device 110 and the tracking code to the server 301.]; Examiner notes that the location of the received item is comparable to a product being located in a zone other than the second zone).
Although Sayan discloses a scanning event indicating that products are located in a zone, Sayan does not explicitly disclose the scanning event including a second indication.
However, Riscalla teaches scanning events including a second indication of a location (Figs. 9B-9C; Col. 6, lines 1-13[The scanner module may use a camera of the inventory device to take an image and/or otherwise analyze a label. For example, in FIG. 9B, during a Search, a Scan icon may be selected to activate the scanner module and scan a label associated with a specific item to provide information regarding the item within the store. For example, the scanner module may be used in this manner to identify total quantities of the specific item on hand and/or at one or more storage locations within the store.]).
The system of Riscalla is applicable to the system of Sayan as they share characteristics and capabilities, namely, they are both targeted to inventory management. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the scanner as disclosed by Sayan to include a second indication as taught by Riscalla. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to expand the system of Sayan in order to project future orders for supplies, to identify losses, such as waste or theft, and the like (Abstract).
Regarding Claim 7, Sayan in view of Riscalla in view of Groomes teaches the computer-implemented system of claim 1, Sayan discloses wherein an order cut-off window, and wherein the order cut-off window (¶0066[The operational guidelines or security policies of the manufacturer may mandate that the product be shipped within a certain period of time (hereinafter referred to as a "freshness period". The server 301 may store a freshness period for each product or for each unique code]).
Although Sayan discloses order cut-off windows, Sayan in view of Riscalla does not explicitly teach the first time window is within an order cut-off window and wherein the second time window is outside the order cut-off window.
However, Groomes teaches two separate time windows during which events occur (¶0064[When there is a simple 1:1 correlation between each of the RFID tags and location data instances (e.g., frequency with which the RFID data is generated is the same as the frequency with which the location data is generated), then the corresponding location data instance can simply be selected and associated with each of the RFID tags to provide the RFID-location data. However, when multiple location data instances occur within the time range for each RFID scan (or vice versa), then determinations can be made to identify the appropriate location data from that range for the RFID scans. For example, the location for each of the RFID scans at timestamp “10:02:04” can be determined from the five location data entries at timestamps “10:02:01.1,” “10:02:01.3,” “10:02:01.5,” “10:02:01.7,” and “10:02:01.9.” Any of a variety of techniques can be used to determine the location for these RFID scans, such as using the location for median data instance (e.g., using “11, 20” from median instance 10:02:01.5) within the range (e.g., 10:02:01.1-10:02:01.9), the mean location value (e.g., “10, 20”+“10, 20”+“11, 20”+“11, 20”+“11, 20”/5=10.6, 20) for the data instances within the range (e.g., 10:02:01.1-10:02:01.9), the mode of the location values (e.g., “11, 20”) within the range (e.g., 10:02:01.1-10:02:01.9), and/or other techniques.]).
The system of Groomes is applicable to the system of Sayan in view of Riscalla as they share characteristics and capabilities, namely, they are all targeted to inventory management. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system as taught by Sayan in view of Riscalla to include time windows as taught by Groomes. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to expand the system of Sayan in view of Riscalla for providing positioning information within indoor environments using RFID scans, such as providing product location information within a retail store (¶0002).
Regarding Claim 8, Sayan in view of Riscalla in view of Groomes teaches the computer-implemented system of claim 1, Sayan discloses wherein the at least one mobile device is configured to scan a product identifier of the first quantity of products and the second quantity of products (Fig. 2; ¶0026[The supplier devices 110 or the consumer devices 110 include software and hardware to scan product tags 140 (e.g., indicia) of one or more products 130]).
Regarding Claim 9, Sayan in view of Riscalla in view of Groomes teaches the computer-implemented system of claim 1, Sayan discloses wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: receive, from the at least one mobile device, location information associated with a location of the first quantity of products (Fig. 3; ¶0089[The wholesaler device can scan the invoice barcode to initialize a bill of lading with the quantities and identities of products that were ordered, and then the quantities received can be automatically updated as each unit of goods is scanned by the device] in view of ¶0077[when an item of goods is scanned by the supplier device 110, the supplier application can send the location of the supplier device 110 and the tracking code to the server 301.]; Examiner notes that identities of products are comparable to product types); and
transmit the location information to a second at least one mobile device for retrieving a first at least one product of the first quantity of products (Fig. 6; ¶0090[The wholesale message sent to the server 301 to indicate sale or shipment of the unit… the message may include the tracking code of the unit and the location of the wholesale device. The wholesale message may also include at least one of a product identifier, shipping time/date, a destination that the unit will be shipped to (e.g., a location, address, or code of vendor or consumer)] and ¶0091[A vendor that receives a shipment of goods from the wholesaler can use a supplier device 110 (hereinafter referred to as the "retail device") to scan the product tag of each unit received to indicate either that the unit has been received (S605) or that the unit has been sold or shipped (S607)]; Examiner notes that the wholesale message which includes an address of a vendor is comparable to transmitting information to a second device, the vendor, for retrieving the product).
Regarding Claim 10, Sayan discloses a computer-implemented method for optimizing a quantity of products for display on a graphical user interface, the method comprising (Fig. 3; ¶0089[The wholesaler device can scan the invoice barcode to initialize a bill of lading with the quantities and identities of products that were ordered, and then the quantities received can be automatically updated as each unit of goods is scanned by the device] in view of ¶0068[When a product tag is scanned by either the supplier device or the consumer device, the server 301 can respond with freshness information, which is displayed on the scanning device by the corresponding application (e.g., the supplier application or the consumer application). The freshness information can include a timestamp of when that product was shipped, an expiration date, product information, etc.]):
receiving, from at least one mobile device, a scan event comprising at least one identifier associated with a first quantity of products, the scan event comprising an indication that the first quantity of products was received at a first zone, wherein a portion of the first quantity of products are a product type, and wherein the first zone is configured to store inbound products (Fig. 3; ¶¶0088-0089[The wholesaler device can scan the invoice barcode to initialize a bill of lading with the quantities and identities of products that were ordered, and then the quantities received can be automatically updated as each unit of goods is scanned by the device] in view of ¶0077[when an item of goods is scanned by the supplier device 110, the supplier application can send the location of the supplier device 110 and the tracking code to the server 301.]; Examiner notes that identities of products are comparable to product types and the location of the supplier device at the time of scanning ordered items is comparable to the first zone for storing inbound products);
retrieving, from a database, a value representing a second quantity of products of the product type that are stored at a second zone (Figs. 3-4; ¶¶0082-0088[the inventory services 413 of the back-end application 404 can be used to maintain the inventory… The manufacturer can access the inventory using a personal computer that is attached to the internet or directly through the supplier application on a supplier device 110.] in view of ¶0081[Each record may include product identifying information (e.g., the product identifier, the tracking code, etc.) and origin information (e.g., location of the manufacturer, the manufacturer identifier, time/date of manufacture, time/date of shipment, origin of raw materials used in product, etc.)]; Examiner notes that accessing the inventory is comparable to retrieving a second quantity of products at a second zone and product identifying information is comparable to a value representing the second quantity of products);
the scan event occurred (Fig. 3; ¶¶0088-0089[The wholesaler device can scan the invoice barcode to initialize a bill of lading with the quantities and identities of products that were ordered, and then the quantities received can be automatically updated as each unit of goods is scanned by the device]);
if the scan event occurred: determining a first total quantity of products, wherein the determined first total quantity of products includes the first quantity of products and the second quantity of products (¶¶0089[For example, each time a unit of goods is scanned by the wholesale device, the server 301 can add that unit to the inventory of the corresponding wholesaler. The wholesaler can access its inventory in a manner similar to that described above for the manufacturer… The wholesaler device can scan the invoice barcode to initialize a bill of lading with the quantities and identities of products that were ordered, and then the quantities received can be automatically updated as each unit of goods is scanned by the device]; Examiner notes that adding received units to the inventory is comparable to determining a total quantity of products); and
modifying a first table of the database based on the determined first total quantity of products (¶¶0089[For example, each time a unit of goods is scanned by the wholesale device, the server 301 can add that unit to the inventory of the corresponding wholesaler. The wholesaler can access its inventory in a manner similar to that described above for the manufacturer… The wholesaler device can scan the invoice barcode to initialize a bill of lading with the quantities and identities of products that were ordered, and then the quantities received can be automatically updated as each unit of goods is scanned by the device]; Examiner notes that adding received units to the inventory is comparable to determining a total quantity of products);
if the scan event occurred: determining a second total quantity of products, wherein the second total quantity of products includes only the value representing the second quantity of products (Figs. 3-4; ¶¶0082-0088[the inventory services 413 of the back-end application 404 can be used to maintain the inventory… The manufacturer can access the inventory using a personal computer that is attached to the internet or directly through the supplier application on a supplier device 110.] in view of ¶0081[Each record may include product identifying information (e.g., the product identifier, the tracking code, etc.) and origin information (e.g., location of the manufacturer, the manufacturer identifier, time/date of manufacture, time/date of shipment, origin of raw materials used in product, etc.)]; Examiner notes that accessing the inventory is comparable to retrieving a second quantity of products at a second zone and product identifying information is comparable to a value representing the second quantity of products); and
modifying a second table of the database based on the determined second total quantity of products (Fig. 3; ¶0082[The inventory services 413 can update the inventory based on the received manufacturer messages and knowledge of the current inventory (e.g., from access to an inventory server of the manufacturer)] in view of ¶0088[For example, each time a unit of goods is scanned by the wholesale device, the server 301 can add that unit to the inventory of the corresponding wholesaler. The wholesaler can access its inventory in a manner similar to that described above for the manufacturer.]; Examiner notes adding to the inventory is comparable to modifying the database);
generating a graphical user interface, the graphical user interface comprising a product availability and either the first total quantity of products or the second total quantity of products (Figs. 7-8; ¶103[The consumer application can also be used to add the scanned item or a product like the scanned item to a virtual shopping cart, which enables the prior scanned items to be purchased at a later time. When the consumer device 120 scans a product tag outside of a retail store, the consumer application can also display the above described product information. This product information can be personalized based on the current location of the user. For example, the product information may include a list of vendors within a pre-defined distance of the scanned location that carry the product.]); and
transmitting the graphical user interface to a customer device (Figs. 4, 5A, and 8; ¶0033[The computer server 301 includes a front-end application 401 and a back-end application 404. The front-end application 401 interfaces with an application of the supplier devices 110 and the consumer devices 120, and forwards requests from these devices to the back-end application 404. The computer server 301 can maintain dedicated portals for communicating with the supplier devices 110 and the consumer devices 120… The application on the consumer devices 120 (hereinafter referred to as the "consumer application") is able to communicate with the computer server 301 through the consumer cloud 102 via a second portal maintained by the computer server 301 that is distinct from the first portal]).
Although Sayan discloses retrieving a value representing products stored at a second zone Sayan does not explicitly disclose wherein the second zone is configured to store stowed products. However, Riscalla teaches zones for storing different products (Col. 6, lines 14-21[after selecting a storage location were the user is, the user may scan a label of a package, a label mounted at the storage location where a specific item is intended to be stored]).
The method of Riscalla is applicable to the method of Sayan as they share characteristics and capabilities, namely, they are both targeted to inventory management. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system as disclosed by Sayan to include zones configured to store products and displaying a total quantity of products as taught by Riscalla. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to expand the method of Sayan in order to project future orders for supplies, to identify losses, such as waste or theft, and the like (Abstract).
Although Sayan discloses scanning events, Sayan in view of Riscalla does not explicitly teach to determining a time window during which the event occurs, event occurring during a first time window, and during a second time window, the second time window being different from the first time window.
However, Groomes teaches two separate time windows during which events occur (¶0064[When there is a simple 1:1 correlation between each of the RFID tags and location data instances (e.g., frequency with which the RFID data is generated is the same as the frequency with which the location data is generated), then the corresponding location data instance can simply be selected and associated with each of the RFID tags to provide the RFID-location data. However, when multiple location data instances occur within the time range for each RFID scan (or vice versa), then determinations can be made to identify the appropriate location data from that range for the RFID scans. For example, the location for each of the RFID scans at timestamp “10:02:04” can be determined from the five location data entries at timestamps “10:02:01.1,” “10:02:01.3,” “10:02:01.5,” “10:02:01.7,” and “10:02:01.9.” Any of a variety of techniques can be used to determine the location for these RFID scans, such as using the location for median data instance (e.g., using “11, 20” from median instance 10:02:01.5) within the range (e.g., 10:02:01.1-10:02:01.9), the mean location value (e.g., “10, 20”+“10, 20”+“11, 20”+“11, 20”+“11, 20”/5=10.6, 20) for the data instances within the range (e.g., 10:02:01.1-10:02:01.9), the mode of the location values (e.g., “11, 20”) within the range (e.g., 10:02:01.1-10:02:01.9), and/or other techniques.]).
The method of Groomes is applicable to the method of Sayan in view of Riscalla as they share characteristics and capabilities, namely, they are all targeted to inventory management. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system as taught by Sayan in view of Riscalla to include time windows as taught by Groomes. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to expand the method of Sayan in view of Riscalla for providing positioning information within indoor environments using RFID scans, such as providing product location information within a retail store (¶0002).
Regarding Claim 12, Sayan in view of Riscalla in view of Groomes teaches the computer-implemented method of claim 10, Sayan discloses wherein the scan event includes a indication that the first quantity of products is located in a zone other than the second zone (Fig. 3; ¶0089[The wholesaler device can scan the invoice barcode to initialize a bill of lading with the quantities and identities of products that were ordered, and then the quantities received can be automatically updated as each unit of goods is scanned by the device] in view of ¶0077[when an item of goods is scanned by the supplier device 110, the supplier application can send the location of the supplier device 110 and the tracking code to the server 301.]; Examiner notes that the location of the received item is comparable to a product being located in a zone other than the second zone).
Although Sayan discloses a scanning event indicating that products are located in a zone, Sayan does not explicitly disclose the scanning event including a second indication.
However, Riscalla teaches scanning events including a second indication of a location (Figs. 9B-9C; Col. 6, lines 1-13[The scanner module may use a camera of the inventory device to take an image and/or otherwise analyze a label. For example, in FIG. 9B, during a Search, a Scan icon may be selected to activate the scanner module and scan a label associated with a specific item to provide information regarding the item within the store. For example, the scanner module may be used in this manner to identify total quantities of the specific item on hand and/or at one or more storage locations within the store.]).
The method of Riscalla is applicable to the method of Sayan as they share characteristics and capabilities, namely, they are both targeted to inventory management. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the scanner as disclosed by Sayan to include a second indication as taught by Riscalla. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to expand the method of Sayan in order to project future orders for supplies, to identify losses, such as waste or theft, and the like (Abstract).
Regarding Claim 16, Sayan in view of Riscalla in view of Groomes teaches the computer-implemented method of claim 10, Sayan discloses wherein an order cut-off window, and wherein the order cut-off window (¶0066[The operational guidelines or security policies of the manufacturer may mandate that the product be shipped within a certain period of time (hereinafter referred to as a "freshness period". The server 301 may store a freshness period for each product or for each unique code]).
Although Sayan discloses order cut-off windows, Sayan in view of Riscalla does not explicitly teach the first time window is within an order cut-off window and wherein the second time window is outside the order cut-off window.
However, Groomes teaches two separate time windows during which events occur (¶0064[When there is a simple 1:1 correlation between each of the RFID tags and location data instances (e.g., frequency with which the RFID data is generated is the same as the frequency with which the location data is generated), then the corresponding location data instance can simply be selected and associated with each of the RFID tags to provide the RFID-location data. However, when multiple location data instances occur within the time range for each RFID scan (or vice versa), then determinations can be made to identify the appropriate location data from that range for the RFID scans. For example, the location for each of the RFID scans at timestamp “10:02:04” can be determined from the five location data entries at timestamps “10:02:01.1,” “10:02:01.3,” “10:02:01.5,” “10:02:01.7,” and “10:02:01.9.” Any of a variety of techniques can be used to determine the location for these RFID scans, such as using the location for median data instance (e.g., using “11, 20” from median instance 10:02:01.5) within the range (e.g., 10:02:01.1-10:02:01.9), the mean location value (e.g., “10, 20”+“10, 20”+“11, 20”+“11, 20”+“11, 20”/5=10.6, 20) for the data instances within the range (e.g., 10:02:01.1-10:02:01.9), the mode of the location values (e.g., “11, 20”) within the range (e.g., 10:02:01.1-10:02:01.9), and/or other techniques.]).
The method of Groomes is applicable to the method of Sayan in view of Riscalla as they share characteristics and capabilities, namely, they are all targeted to inventory management. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system as taught by Sayan in view of Riscalla to include time windows as taught by Groomes. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to expand the method of Sayan in view of Riscalla for providing positioning information within indoor environments using RFID scans, such as providing product location information within a retail store (¶0002).
Regarding Claim 17, Sayan in view of Riscalla in view of Groomes teaches the computer-implemented method of claim 10, Sayan discloses wherein the at least one mobile device is configured to scan a product identifier of the first quantity of products and the second quantity of products (Fig. 2; ¶0026[The supplier devices 110 or the consumer devices 110 include software and hardware to scan product tags 140 (e.g., indicia) of one or more products 130]).
Regarding Claim 18, Sayan in view of Riscalla in view of Groomes teaches the computer-implemented method of claim 10, Sayan discloses the method further comprising: receiving, from the at least one mobile device, location information associated with a location of the first quantity of products (Fig. 3; ¶0089[The wholesaler device can scan the invoice barcode to initialize a bill of lading with the quantities and identities of products that were ordered, and then the quantities received can be automatically updated as each unit of goods is scanned by the device] in view of ¶0077[when an item of goods is scanned by the supplier device 110, the supplier application can send the location of the supplier device 110 and the tracking code to the server 301.]; Examiner notes that identities of products are comparable to product types); and
transmitting the location information to a second at least one mobile device for retrieving a first at least one product of the first quantity of products (Fig. 6; ¶0090[The wholesale message sent to the server 301 to indicate sale or shipment of the unit… the message may include the tracking code of the unit and the location of the wholesale device. The wholesale message may also include at least one of a product identifier, shipping time/date, a destination that the unit will be shipped to (e.g., a location, address, or code of vendor or consumer)] and ¶0091[A vendor that receives a shipment of goods from the wholesaler can use a supplier device 110 (hereinafter referred to as the "retail device") to scan the product tag of each unit received to indicate either that the unit has been received (S605) or that the unit has been sold or shipped (S607)]; Examiner notes that the wholesale message which includes an address of a vendor is comparable to transmitting information to a second device, the vendor, for retrieving the product).
Regarding Claim 19, Sayan in view of Riscalla in view of Groomes teaches the computer-implemented method of claim 10, Sayan discloses wherein the graphical user interface comprises a web page (Figs. 7-8; ¶0044[A consumer uses the consumer device 120 to scan the indicia to retrieve the link and then selects the link to be directed to a website or a landing page (S502)]).
Regarding Claim 23, Sayan in view of Riscalla in view of Groomes teaches the computer-implemented system of claim 1, wherein one or more set times, one or more lead times, or a combination of one or more set times and one or more lead times (Fig. 3; ¶0068[The freshness information can include a timestamp of when that product was shipped, an expiration date, product information, etc. For example, the expiration date may be stored by the server 301 for each product or code, and thus a scan of the product tag by the consumer device or the supplier device can cause its corresponding application to display the expiration date and possibly a warning if the expiration date has been exceeded.]).
Although Sayan discloses scanning events, Sayan in view of Riscalla does not explicitly teach the first time window is based on set or lead times.
However, Groomes teaches two separate time windows during which events occur (¶0064[When there is a simple 1:1 correlation between each of the RFID tags and location data instances (e.g., frequency with which the RFID data is generated is the same as the frequency with which the location data is generated), then the corresponding location data instance can simply be selected and associated with each of the RFID tags to provide the RFID-location data. However, when multiple location data instances occur within the time range for each RFID scan (or vice versa), then determinations can be made to identify the appropriate location data from that range for the RFID scans. For example, the location for each of the RFID scans at timestamp “10:02:04” can be determined from the five location data entries at timestamps “10:02:01.1,” “10:02:01.3,” “10:02:01.5,” “10:02:01.7,” and “10:02:01.9.” Any of a variety of techniques can be used to determine the location for these RFID scans, such as using the location for median data instance (e.g., using “11, 20” from median instance 10:02:01.5) within the range (e.g., 10:02:01.1-10:02:01.9), the mean location value (e.g., “10, 20”+“10, 20”+“11, 20”+“11, 20”+“11, 20”/5=10.6, 20) for the data instances within the range (e.g., 10:02:01.1-10:02:01.9), the mode of the location values (e.g., “11, 20”) within the range (e.g., 10:02:01.1-10:02:01.9), and/or other techniques.]).
The system of Groomes is applicable to the system of Sayan in view of Riscalla as they share characteristics and capabilities, namely, they are all targeted to inventory management. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system as taught by Sayan in view of Riscalla to include time windows as taught by Groomes. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to expand the system of Sayan in view of Riscalla for providing positioning information within indoor environments using RFID scans, such as providing product location information within a retail store (¶0002).
Regarding Claim 24, Sayan in view of Riscalla in view of Groomes teaches the computer-implemented method of claim 10, Sayan discloses wherein one or more set times, one or more lead times, or a combination of one or more set times and one or more lead times (Fig. 3; ¶0068[The freshness information can include a timestamp of when that product was shipped, an expiration date, product information, etc. For example, the expiration date may be stored by the server 301 for each product or code, and thus a scan of the product tag by the consumer device or the supplier device can cause its corresponding application to display the expiration date and possibly a warning if the expiration date has been exceeded.]).
Although Sayan discloses scanning events, Sayan in view of Riscalla does not explicitly teach the first time window is based on set or lead times.
However, Groomes teaches two separate time windows during which events occur (¶0064[When there is a simple 1:1 correlation between each of the RFID tags and location data instances (e.g., frequency with which the RFID data is generated is the same as the frequency with which the location data is generated), then the corresponding location data instance can simply be selected and associated with each of the RFID tags to provide the RFID-location data. However, when multiple location data instances occur within the time range for each RFID scan (or vice versa), then determinations can be made to identify the appropriate location data from that range for the RFID scans. For example, the location for each of the RFID scans at timestamp “10:02:04” can be determined from the five location data entries at timestamps “10:02:01.1,” “10:02:01.3,” “10:02:01.5,” “10:02:01.7,” and “10:02:01.9.” Any of a variety of techniques can be used to determine the location for these RFID scans, such as using the location for median data instance (e.g., using “11, 20” from median instance 10:02:01.5) within the range (e.g., 10:02:01.1-10:02:01.9), the mean location value (e.g., “10, 20”+“10, 20”+“11, 20”+“11, 20”+“11, 20”/5=10.6, 20) for the data instances within the range (e.g., 10:02:01.1-10:02:01.9), the mode of the location values (e.g., “11, 20”) within the range (e.g., 10:02:01.1-10:02:01.9), and/or other techniques.]).
The method of Groomes is applicable to the method of Sayan in view of Riscalla as they share characteristics and capabilities, namely, they are all targeted to inventory management. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system as taught by Sayan in view of Riscalla to include time windows as taught by Groomes. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to expand the method of Sayan in view of Riscalla for providing positioning information within indoor environments using RFID scans, such as providing product location information within a retail store (¶0002).
Claim(s) 4, 13, and 20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Sayan in view of Riscalla in further view of Groomes in further view of Harnesk et al. (US 2018/0157245 A1 [previously cited]).
Regarding Claim 4, Sayan in view of Riscalla in view of Groomes teaches the computer-implemented system of claim 1, Sayan discloses wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: receive, via the graphical user interface, an order from the customer device, wherein the order includes order information including a selected quantity of the product type (Figs. 7-8; ¶¶0090-0101[In response to receipt of a purchase order from a retailer or a consumer, the wholesaler can use the wholesaler device to scan a unit of goods to send a wholesale message to the server 301 that acknowledges the sale to the retailer/consumer or a planned shipment of the unit to the retailer/consumer (S604)]; Examiner notes that a unit of goods is comparable to a selected quantity); and
assign a indication to a first at least one product of the first quantity of products based on the order information (¶0090[In response to receipt of a purchase order from a retailer or a consumer, the wholesaler can use the wholesaler device to scan a unit of goods to send a wholesale message to the server 301 that acknowledges the sale to the retailer/consumer or a planned shipment of the unit to the retailer/consumer (S604)]).
Although Sayan discloses assigning an indication to products, Sayan in view of Riscalla in view of Groomes does not explicitly teach assigning a priority stow indication to products.
However, Harnesk et al., hereinafter, Harnesk, teaches packing priority (¶0052[For instance, orders that need to go out overnight air would receive higher packing priority]).
The system of Harnesk is applicable to the system of Sayan in view of Riscalla in view of Groomes as they share characteristics and capabilities, namely, they are all targeted to inventory management. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the order processing system as taught by Sayan in view of Riscalla in view of Groomes to include prioritizing stowing and packing as taught by Harnesk. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to expand the system of Sayan in view of Riscalla in view of Groomes so that many different factors may be considered when determining which boxes to produce and which order to produce them in for optimal fulfillment efficiency (¶0053).
Regarding Claim 13, Sayan in view of Riscalla in view of Groomes teaches the computer-implemented method of claim 10, Sayan discloses the method further comprising: receiving, via the graphical user interface, an order from the customer device, wherein the order includes order information including a selected quantity of the product type (Figs. 7-8; ¶¶0090-0101[In response to receipt of a purchase order from a retailer or a consumer, the wholesaler can use the wholesaler device to scan a unit of goods to send a wholesale message to the server 301 that acknowledges the sale to the retailer/consumer or a planned shipment of the unit to the retailer/consumer (S604)]; Examiner notes that a unit of goods is comparable to a selected quantity);
assigning a indication to a first at least one product of the first quantity of products based on the order information (¶0090[In response to receipt of a purchase order from a retailer or a consumer, the wholesaler can use the wholesaler device to scan a unit of goods to send a wholesale message to the server 301 that acknowledges the sale to the retailer/consumer or a planned shipment of the unit to the retailer/consumer (S604)]).
Although Sayan discloses assigning an indication to products, Sayan in view of Riscalla in view of Groomes does not explicitly teach assigning a priority stow indication to products.
However, Harnesk teaches packing priority (¶0052[For instance, orders that need to go out overnight air would receive higher packing priority]).
The method of Harnesk is applicable to the method of Sayan in view of Riscalla in view of Groomes as they share characteristics and capabilities, namely, they are all targeted to inventory management. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the order processing system as taught by Sayan in view of Riscalla in view of Groomes to include prioritizing stowing and packing as taught by Harnesk. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to expand the method of Sayan in view of Riscalla in view of Groomes so that many different factors may be considered when determining which boxes to produce and which order to produce them in for optimal fulfillment efficiency (¶0053).
Regarding Claim 20, Sayan discloses a computer-implemented system for optimizing a quantity of products for display on a graphical user interface, the system comprising: a memory storing instructions; and at least one processor configured to execute the instructions to (Fig. 3; ¶0089[The wholesaler device can scan the invoice barcode to initialize a bill of lading with the quantities and identities of products that were ordered, and then the quantities received can be automatically updated as each unit of goods is scanned by the device] in view of ¶0068[When a product tag is scanned by either the supplier device or the consumer device, the server 301 can respond with freshness information, which is displayed on the scanning device by the corresponding application (e.g., the supplier application or the consumer application). The freshness information can include a timestamp of when that product was shipped, an expiration date, product information, etc.], ¶0029):
receive, from at least one mobile device, a scan event comprising at least one identifier associated with a first quantity of products, the scan event comprising an indication that the first quantity of products was received at a first zone and location information associated with a location of the first quantity of products, wherein a portion of the first quantity of products are a product type, and wherein the first zone is configured to store inbound products (Fig. 3; ¶¶0088-0089[The wholesaler device can scan the invoice barcode to initialize a bill of lading with the quantities and identities of products that were ordered, and then the quantities received can be automatically updated as each unit of goods is scanned by the device] in view of ¶0077[when an item of goods is scanned by the supplier device 110, the supplier application can send the location of the supplier device 110 and the tracking code to the server 301.]; Examiner notes that identities of products are comparable to product types and the location of the supplier device at the time of scanning ordered items is comparable to the first zone for storing inbound products);
retrieve, from a database, a value representing a second quantity of products of the product type that are stored at a second zone (Figs. 3-4; ¶¶0082-0088[the inventory services 413 of the back-end application 404 can be used to maintain the inventory… The manufacturer can access the inventory using a personal computer that is attached to the internet or directly through the supplier application on a supplier device 110.] in view of ¶0081[Each record may include product identifying information (e.g., the product identifier, the tracking code, etc.) and origin information (e.g., location of the manufacturer, the manufacturer identifier, time/date of manufacture, time/date of shipment, origin of raw materials used in product, etc.)]; Examiner notes that accessing the inventory is comparable to retrieving a second quantity of products at a second zone and product identifying information is comparable to a value representing the second quantity of products);
the scan event occurred (Fig. 3; ¶¶0088-0089[The wholesaler device can scan the invoice barcode to initialize a bill of lading with the quantities and identities of products that were ordered, and then the quantities received can be automatically updated as each unit of goods is scanned by the device]);
if the scan event occurred: determine a first total quantity of products, wherein the determined first total quantity of products includes the value representing the portion of the first quantity of products and the value representing the second quantity of products (¶¶0089[For example, each time a unit of goods is scanned by the wholesale device, the server 301 can add that unit to the inventory of the corresponding wholesaler. The wholesaler can access its inventory in a manner similar to that described above for the manufacturer… The wholesaler device can scan the invoice barcode to initialize a bill of lading with the quantities and identities of products that were ordered, and then the quantities received can be automatically updated as each unit of goods is scanned by the device]; Examiner notes that adding received units to the inventory is comparable to determining a total quantity of products); and
modify a first table of the database based on the determined first total quantity of products (¶¶0089[For example, each time a unit of goods is scanned by the wholesale device, the server 301 can add that unit to the inventory of the corresponding wholesaler. The wholesaler can access its inventory in a manner similar to that described above for the manufacturer… The wholesaler device can scan the invoice barcode to initialize a bill of lading with the quantities and identities of products that were ordered, and then the quantities received can be automatically updated as each unit of goods is scanned by the device]; Examiner notes that adding received units to the inventory is comparable to determining a total quantity of products);
if the scan event occurred: determine a second total quantity of products, wherein the determined second total quantity of products includes only the value representing the second quantity of products (Figs. 3-4; ¶¶0082-0088[the inventory services 413 of the back-end application 404 can be used to maintain the inventory… The manufacturer can access the inventory using a personal computer that is attached to the internet or directly through the supplier application on a supplier device 110.] in view of ¶0081[Each record may include product identifying information (e.g., the product identifier, the tracking code, etc.) and origin information (e.g., location of the manufacturer, the manufacturer identifier, time/date of manufacture, time/date of shipment, origin of raw materials used in product, etc.)]; Examiner notes that accessing the inventory is comparable to retrieving a second quantity of products at a second zone and product identifying information is comparable to a value representing the second quantity of products); and
modify a second table of the database based on the determined second total quantity of products (Fig. 3; ¶0082[The inventory services 413 can update the inventory based on the received manufacturer messages and knowledge of the current inventory (e.g., from access to an inventory server of the manufacturer)] in view of ¶0088[For example, each time a unit of goods is scanned by the wholesale device, the server 301 can add that unit to the inventory of the corresponding wholesaler. The wholesaler can access its inventory in a manner similar to that described above for the manufacturer.]; Examiner notes adding to the inventory is comparable to modifying the database);
generate a graphical user interface, the graphical user interface comprising a product availability and either the first total quantity of products or the second total quantity of products (Figs. 7-8; ¶103[The consumer application can also be used to add the scanned item or a product like the scanned item to a virtual shopping cart, which enables the prior scanned items to be purchased at a later time. When the consumer device 120 scans a product tag outside of a retail store, the consumer application can also display the above described product information. This product information can be personalized based on the current location of the user. For example, the product information may include a list of vendors within a pre-defined distance of the scanned location that carry the product.]); and
transmit the graphical user interface to a customer device (Figs. 4, 5A, and 8; ¶0033[The computer server 301 includes a front-end application 401 and a back-end application 404. The front-end application 401 interfaces with an application of the supplier devices 110 and the consumer devices 120, and forwards requests from these devices to the back-end application 404. The computer server 301 can maintain dedicated portals for communicating with the supplier devices 110 and the consumer devices 120… The application on the consumer devices 120 (hereinafter referred to as the "consumer application") is able to communicate with the computer server 301 through the consumer cloud 102 via a second portal maintained by the computer server 301 that is distinct from the first portal]);
receive, via the graphical user interface, an order from the customer device, wherein the order includes order information including a selected quantity of the product type (Figs. 7-8; ¶¶0090-0101[In response to receipt of a purchase order from a retailer or a consumer, the wholesaler can use the wholesaler device to scan a unit of goods to send a wholesale message to the server 301 that acknowledges the sale to the retailer/consumer or a planned shipment of the unit to the retailer/consumer (S604)]; Examiner notes that a unit of goods is comparable to a selected quantity);
assign a indication to a first at least one product of the first quantity of products based on the order information (¶0090[In response to receipt of a purchase order from a retailer or a consumer, the wholesaler can use the wholesaler device to scan a unit of goods to send a wholesale message to the server 301 that acknowledges the sale to the retailer/consumer or a planned shipment of the unit to the retailer/consumer (S604)]); and
transmit the location information to a second at least one mobile device for retrieving the first at least one product (Fig. 6; ¶0090[The wholesale message sent to the server 301 to indicate sale or shipment of the unit… the message may include the tracking code of the unit and the location of the wholesale device. The wholesale message may also include at least one of a product identifier, shipping time/date, a destination that the unit will be shipped to (e.g., a location, address, or code of vendor or consumer)] and ¶0091[A vendor that receives a shipment of goods from the wholesaler can use a supplier device 110 (hereinafter referred to as the "retail device") to scan the product tag of each unit received to indicate either that the unit has been received (S605) or that the unit has been sold or shipped (S607)]; Examiner notes that the wholesale message which includes an address of a vendor is comparable to transmitting information to a second device, the vendor, for retrieving the product).
Although Sayan discloses retrieving a value representing products stored at a second zone Sayan does not explicitly disclose wherein the second zone is configured to store stowed products. However, Riscalla teaches zones for storing different products (Col. 6, lines 14-21[after selecting a storage location were the user is, the user may scan a label of a package, a label mounted at the storage location where a specific item is intended to be stored]).
The system of Riscalla is applicable to the system of Sayan as they share characteristics and capabilities, namely, they are both targeted to inventory management. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system as disclosed by Sayan to include zones configured to store products and displaying a total quantity of products as taught by Riscalla. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to expand the system of Sayan in order to project future orders for supplies, to identify losses, such as waste or theft, and the like (Abstract).
Although Sayan discloses scanning events, Sayan in view of Riscalla does not explicitly teach to determine a time window during which the event occurs, event occurring during a first time window, and during a second time window, the second time window being different from the first time window.
However, Groomes teaches two separate time windows during which events occur (¶0064[When there is a simple 1:1 correlation between each of the RFID tags and location data instances (e.g., frequency with which the RFID data is generated is the same as the frequency with which the location data is generated), then the corresponding location data instance can simply be selected and associated with each of the RFID tags to provide the RFID-location data. However, when multiple location data instances occur within the time range for each RFID scan (or vice versa), then determinations can be made to identify the appropriate location data from that range for the RFID scans. For example, the location for each of the RFID scans at timestamp “10:02:04” can be determined from the five location data entries at timestamps “10:02:01.1,” “10:02:01.3,” “10:02:01.5,” “10:02:01.7,” and “10:02:01.9.” Any of a variety of techniques can be used to determine the location for these RFID scans, such as using the location for median data instance (e.g., using “11, 20” from median instance 10:02:01.5) within the range (e.g., 10:02:01.1-10:02:01.9), the mean location value (e.g., “10, 20”+“10, 20”+“11, 20”+“11, 20”+“11, 20”/5=10.6, 20) for the data instances within the range (e.g., 10:02:01.1-10:02:01.9), the mode of the location values (e.g., “11, 20”) within the range (e.g., 10:02:01.1-10:02:01.9), and/or other techniques.]).
The system of Groomes is applicable to the system of Sayan in view of Riscalla as they share characteristics and capabilities, namely, they are all targeted to inventory management. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system as taught by Sayan in view of Riscalla to include time windows as taught by Groomes. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to expand the system of Sayan in view of Riscalla for providing positioning information within indoor environments using RFID scans, such as providing product location information within a retail store (¶0002).
Although Sayan discloses assigning an indication to products, Sayan in view of Riscalla in view of Groomes does not explicitly teach assigning a priority stow indication to products.
However, Harnesk teaches packing priority (¶0052[For instance, orders that need to go out overnight air would receive higher packing priority]).
The system of Harnesk is applicable to the system of Sayan in view of Riscalla in view of Groomes as they share characteristics and capabilities, namely, they are all targeted to inventory management. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the order processing system as taught by Sayan in view of Riscalla in view of Groomes to include prioritizing stowing and packing as taught by Harnesk. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to expand the system of Sayan in view of Riscalla in view of Groomes so that many different factors may be considered when determining which boxes to produce and which order to produce them in for optimal fulfillment efficiency (¶0053).
Claim(s) 21 and 22 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Sayan in view of Riscalla in further view of Groomes in view of Segawa et al. (US 20140107833 A1 [previously cited]).
Regarding Claim 21, Sayan in view of Riscalla in view of Groomes teaches the computer-implemented system of claim 1, Sayan discloses wherein the first zone includes one or more of an inbound zone, a buffer zone, or a drop zone (Fig. 3; ¶0089[The wholesaler device can scan the invoice barcode to initialize a bill of lading with the quantities and identities of products that were ordered, and then the quantities received can be automatically updated as each unit of goods is scanned by the device] in view of ¶0077[when an item of goods is scanned by the supplier device 110, the supplier application can send the location of the supplier device 110 and the tracking code to the server 301.]; Examiner notes that the location of the supplier device at the time of scanning ordered items is comparable to the first zone), and
wherein the second zone includes a zone (Figs. 3-4; ¶¶0082-0088[the inventory services 413 of the back-end application 404 can be used to maintain the inventory… The manufacturer can access the inventory using a personal computer that is attached to the internet or directly through the supplier application on a supplier device 110.] in view of ¶0081[Each record may include product identifying information (e.g., the product identifier, the tracking code, etc.) and origin information (e.g., location of the manufacturer, the manufacturer identifier, time/date of manufacture, time/date of shipment, origin of raw materials used in product, etc.)]; Examiner notes that accessing the inventory is comparable to retrieving a second quantity of products at a second zone).
Although Sayan discloses a second zone, Sayan in view of Riscalla in view of Groomes does not explicitly teach a picking zone.
However, Segawa et al., hereinafter, Segawa, teaches a picking zone (¶0090[The picking and assorting system 1 (which is one example of a picking and assorting system) is preferably used with a plurality of picking zones. Each of the picking zones includes the article racks 9 (which are one example of an article rack) that are utilized for total picking by using the buckets 27 (which are one example of first containers)]).
The system of Segawa is applicable to the system of Sayan in view of Riscalla in view of Groomes as they share characteristics and capabilities, namely, they are all targeted to inventory management. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the zones as taught by Sayan in view of Riscalla in view of Groomes to include a picking zone as taught by Segawa. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to expand the system of Sayan in view of Riscalla in view of Groomes in order to improve the efficiency of the entire process, from picking to sorting (¶0009).
Regarding Claim 22, Sayan in view of Riscalla in view of Groomes teaches the computer-implemented method of claim 10, Sayan discloses wherein the first zone includes one or more of an inbound zone, a buffer zone, or a drop zone (Fig. 3; ¶0089[The wholesaler device can scan the invoice barcode to initialize a bill of lading with the quantities and identities of products that were ordered, and then the quantities received can be automatically updated as each unit of goods is scanned by the device] in view of ¶0077[when an item of goods is scanned by the supplier device 110, the supplier application can send the location of the supplier device 110 and the tracking code to the server 301.]; Examiner notes that the location of the supplier device at the time of scanning ordered items is comparable to the first zone), and
wherein the second zone includes a zone (Figs. 3-4; ¶¶0082-0088[the inventory services 413 of the back-end application 404 can be used to maintain the inventory… The manufacturer can access the inventory using a personal computer that is attached to the internet or directly through the supplier application on a supplier device 110.] in view of ¶0081[Each record may include product identifying information (e.g., the product identifier, the tracking code, etc.) and origin information (e.g., location of the manufacturer, the manufacturer identifier, time/date of manufacture, time/date of shipment, origin of raw materials used in product, etc.)]; Examiner notes that accessing the inventory is comparable to retrieving a second quantity of products at a second zone).
Although Sayan discloses a second zone, Sayan in view of Riscalla in view of Groomes does not explicitly teach a picking zone.
However, Segawa teaches a picking zone (¶0090[The picking and assorting system 1 (which is one example of a picking and assorting system) is preferably used with a plurality of picking zones. Each of the picking zones includes the article racks 9 (which are one example of an article rack) that are utilized for total picking by using the buckets 27 (which are one example of first containers)]).
The method of Segawa is applicable to the method of Sayan in view of Riscalla in view of Groomes as they share characteristics and capabilities, namely, they are all targeted to inventory management. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the zones as taught by Sayan in view of Riscalla in view of Groomes to include a picking zone as taught by Segawa. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to expand the method of Sayan in view of Riscalla in view of Groomes in order to improve the efficiency of the entire process, from picking to sorting (¶0009).
Response to Arguments
Acknowledgment is made of applicant’s amendment of Claim 7 regarding the previous Claim Objection.
Accordingly, the previous Claim Objections are withdrawn.
Applicant’s arguments on pages 13-21 of the remarks filed 03/24/2026, with respect to the previous 35 USC § 101 rejections have been fully considered but are not persuasive.
Applicant argues on pages 13-17 of the remarks that the amended claims do not recite a judicial exception. Examiner respectfully disagrees. The MPEP enumerates groupings of abstract ideas, thereby synthesizing the holdings of various court decisions to facilitate examination. See MPEP 2106.04. Among the enumerated groupings is the Certain Methods of Organizing Human Activity grouping, which includes activity that falls within the enumerated sub-grouping of commercial or legal interactions, including advertising, marketing or sales activities or behaviors. With respect to the claims, the examiner notes a computer-implemented system, on a graphical user interface, a memory storing instructions; and at least one processor configured to execute the instructions to, from at least one mobile device, from a database, a customer device have been analyzed as additional elements and accordingly are not analyzed under Step 2A, Prong 1. The claims further recite limitations such as determining a time window of a scan event, modifying a table, generating an interface comprising product availability, and transmitting the interface to a customer. These amendments represent certain methods of organizing human activity. ¶0004 of the Specification illustrates this, describing the invention as pertaining to product sales. Accordingly, these claims recite Certain Methods of Organizing Human Activity.
Furthermore, as noted above, the claims recite a system for optimizing a quantity of products for display, the system comprising: receive, a scan event comprising at least one identifier associated with a first quantity of products, the scan event comprising an indication that the first quantity of products was received at a first zone, wherein a portion of the first quantity of products are a product type, and wherein the first zone is configured to store inbound products; retrieve, a value representing a second quantity of products of the product type that are stored at a second zone, wherein the second zone is configured to store stowed products; determine a time window during which the scan event occurred; if the scan event occurred during a first time window: determine a first total quantity of products, wherein the determined first total quantity of products includes a value representing the portion of the first quantity of products and the value representing the second quantity of products; and modify a first table based on the determined first total quantity of products; if the scan event occurred during a second time window, the second time window being different from the first time window: determine a second total quantity of products, wherein the determined second total quantity of products includes only the value representing the second quantity of products; and modify a second table based on the determined second total quantity of products; generate a graphical user interface, a product availability and either the first total quantity of products or the second total quantity of products; and transmit the graphical user interface to a customer as recited in amended claim 1, or more simply, providing product recommendations. This is an abstract idea because it is a concept of business relations, marketing and sales activities and behaviors which makes it a method of organizing human activity (i.e., one of the groupings of abstract ideas enumerated in MPEP 2106.04(a)(2)).
Applicant argues on pages 17-20 of the remarks that the amended claims integrate the abstract idea into a practical application. Examiner respectfully disagrees. The MPEP sets forth, in Step 2A Prong Two, that a claim that recites a judicial exception is not directed to that judicial exception, if the claim as a whole "integrates the recited judicial exception into a practical application of that exception." The evaluation of Prong Two requires the use of the considerations (e.g. improving technology, effecting a particular treatment or prophylaxis, implementing with a particular machine, etc.) identified by the Supreme Court and the Federal Circuit, to ensure that the claim as a whole integrates [the] judicial exception into a practical application [that] will apply, rely on, or use the judicial exception in a manner that imposes a meaningful limit on the judicial exception, such that the claim is more than a drafting effort designed to monopolize the judicial exception.' In the instant case, the claims include additional elements such as a computer-implemented system, on a graphical user interface, a memory storing instructions; and at least one processor configured to execute the instructions to, from at least one mobile device, from a database, a customer device. While these elements are recited, they are merely peripherally incorporated in order to implement the abstract idea. Put another way, these additional elements are merely used to apply the abstract idea of improving the availability of products that can be purchased by customers without effectuating any improvement or change to the functioning of the additional elements or other technology. Applicant's disclosure does not articulate or suggest how these additional elements function, individually or in combination, in any manner other than using generic functionality nor does the disclosure articulate how the elements provide a technical improvement. Accordingly, the additional elements do not integrate the abstract idea into a practical application because they merely amount to using the computing components as a tool to perform the abstract idea.
Applicant further cites ¶¶0002-0004 of the instant specification for support. ¶0004 states that the availability may indicate that the products are available “to sell to a customer and/or available for a customer to purchase. In particular, there is a need for improved systems and methods for marking, indicating, or otherwise considering not yet stowed products as available.” Examiner notes that ¶¶0002-0004 show an improvement to the argued business idea of improving the availability of products available for purchase by customers in a commercial environment. This is part of the abstract idea and does not demonstrate a technical improvement. With respect to the applicant’s comments regarding ¶0085 of the instant specification, Examiner notes that determining a total quantity of products is also part of the abstract idea and the mere execution of that idea on generic and high level components such as a “database” does not overcome the 101 rejection.
Applicant argues on pages 20 and 21 of the remarks that the amended claims recite significantly more. One consideration when determining whether a claim recites significantly more than a judicial exception in Step 2B is whether the additional elements amount to more than a recitation of the words "apply it" (or an equivalent) or are more than mere instructions to implement an abstract idea or other exception on a computer. Evaluation of this consideration includes evaluating whether the claim recites only the idea of a solution or outcome the claim fails to recite details of how a solution to a problem is accomplished. Cases have found that additional elements are more than "apply it" or are no "mere instructions" when the claim recites a technological solution to a technological problem. Applicant's claims provide no similar technological solution to a technological problem. Rather, the claims at issue only merely recite the abstract idea of improving the availability of products that can be purchased by customers with generic computer components being recited in a generic manner. The specificity of the claims is directed toward the abstract idea of improving the availability of products that can be purchased by customers and not toward any technology, and accordingly, is insufficient to provide significantly more. While additional elements are included within the claims, they are claimed in a generic manner and merely perform generic functions. Applicant's disclosure does not articulate or suggest how these additional elements function, individually or in combination, in any manner other than using generic functionality. As such, the claims represent mere instructions to apply an abstract idea to a general-purpose computer.
Accordingly, Examiner maintains that the invention is directed to a judicial exception without
significantly more. The claims recite an abstract idea. This judicial exception is not integrated into a practical application. The claim(s) do not include additional elements that are sufficient to amount to significantly more than the judicial exception. Thus the 35 USC §101 rejections are maintained.
Applicant’s arguments on pages 22-24 of the remarks filed 03/24/2026, with respect to the previous 35 USC § 103 rejections have been fully considered but are moot in view of the new 103 rejection of the amended claims.
Conclusion
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/AHOORA LADONI/Examiner, Art Unit 3689
/ANNA MAE MITROS/Examiner, Art Unit 3689
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