DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Status of Claims
Claims 1-2, 7-9, 11-13 and 17-20 have been examined and are pending. Claims 3-6, 10, and 14-16 were canceled. Claims 1, 9, 11, 12, 18-20 were amended.
Priority
Application 18/309,563 was filed 04/28/2023.
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 1-2, 7-9, 11-13 and 17-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 because the claimed invention is directed to judicial exception (i.e., a law of nature, a natural phenomenon, or an abstract idea) without significantly more. Claims 1-2, 7-9, 11-13 and 17-20 are directed to a system, method, or product which are/is one of the statutory categories of invention. (Step 1: YES).
Claims 1, 12, and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 because the claimed invention is directed to an abstract idea without significantly more. The claim recites a method and computing device for tracing food commodity in a supply chain. For Claims 1, 12 and 20 the limitations of (Claim 1 being representative):
[…]:
Receive, […], a message indicating an optical code associated with a unit of a food product has been scanned […] at a location, the message including a product unit-specific identifier encoded in the optical code;
identify […], a merchant record including the product unit-specific identifier and a merchant identifier of a merchant at the location;
trace a supply chain path of the unit of the food product through additional records […] that are linked to the product unit-specific identifier; and
output supply chain derived information on the unit of the food product based on the traced supply chain path […],
wherein the additional records include records of data obtained from supply chain entities including a producer with a producer unit-specific identifier, an intermediate processor with an intermediate processor identifier, and the merchant with the merchant identifier,
the supply chain derived information on the unit of the food product includes a ledger […] including the records of data, the ledger including time information and/or location information of the producer, the intermediate processor, and the merchant,
the producer unit-specific identifier, the intermediate processor identifier, and the merchant identifier are linked via the product unit-specific identifier in the ledger, and
the supply chain derived information on the unit of the food product includes a nutrition metric, which is estimated utilizing a […] model based on the records of data stored in the ledger, as drafted, are processes that, under the broadest reasonable interpretation, covers certain methods of organizing human activity (i.e., managing personal behavior including following rules or instructions) but for recitation of generic computer components. The Examiner notes that “certain method[s] of organizing human activity” includes a person's interaction with a computer (see MPEP 2106.04(a)(2)(II)). If a claim limitation, under its broadest reasonable interpretation, covers managing personal behavior or interactions between people but for the recitation of generic computer components, then it falls within the “certain methods of organizing human activity” grouping of abstract ideas. Accordingly, Claims 1, 12 and 20 recite an abstract idea. (Step 2A- Prong 1: YES. The claims recite an abstract idea).
This judicial exception is not integrated into a practical application. Claims 1, 12, and 20 recites the additional elements of a server computing device (Claims 1, and 20), one or more processors (Claims 1, and 20), a memory (Claims 1, and 20), camera-equipped computing device (Claims 1, 12, and 20), a database (Claims 1, 12, and 20), and machine learning (Claims 1, 12, and 20), that implements the identified abstract idea. These additional elements are not described by the applicant and are recited at a high-level of generality (i.e., one or more generic computers performing a generic computer functions) such that it amounts no more than mere instructions to apply the exception using a generic computer components. Accordingly, even in combination these additional elements do not integrate the abstract idea into a practical application because it does not impose any meaningful limits on practicing the abstract idea. Claims 1, 12, and 20 are directed to an abstract idea. (Step 2A-Prong 2: NO: the additional claimed elements are not integrated into a practical application).
The claims do not include additional elements that are sufficient to amount to significantly more than the judicial exception. As discussed above with respect to integration of the abstract idea into a practical application, the additional elements of a server computing device (Claims 1, and 20), one or more processors (Claims 1, and 20), a memory (Claims 1, and 20), camera-equipped computing device (Claims 1, 12, and 20), a database (Claims 1, 12, and 20), and machine learning (Claims 1, 12, and 20), to perform the noted steps amounts to no more than mere instructions to apply the exception using a generic computer component. Mere instructions to apply an exception using a generic computer component cannot provide an inventive concept (“significantly more”). Accordingly, even in combination, these additional elements do not provide significantly more. As such claims 1, 12, and 20 are not patent eligible. (Step 2B: NO. The claims do not provide significantly more).
Dependent Claims 2, 7-9, 11, and 13, 17-19 are similarly rejected because they either further define/narrow the abstract idea of independent claims 1, 12 and 20 as discussed above. Claim 2 and 13 merely describe the supply chain path including a node and leaf nodes at the unit of the food product and food commodities within the unit of the food product. Claim 7 and 17 merely describe(s) an optical code. Claim(s) 8, 9, 11, 18, and 19 merely describe(s) the supply chain derived information. Therefore claims 2, 7-9, 11, 13, and 17-19 are considered patent ineligible for the reasons given above.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
Claim(s) 1, 7, 12, and 17 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hodges (US 20160267416 A1), in view of Michel (US 20230214982 A1).
Regarding Claim 1,
Hodges discloses, A computing system for achieving traceability in a food commodity supply chain, the computing system comprising: A server computing device having one or more processors configured to execute instructions using portions of associated memory to: (Hodges Par. 0139-0142)
Receive, from a camera-equipped computing device, a message indicating an optical code associated with a unit of a food product has been scanned by a camera-equipped computing device at a location, the message including a product unit-specific identifier encoded in the optical code; “For example, when an identifier label is scanned and the digital representation is transmitted to the system 12, data associated with the identifier label is retrieved by the distributed database management module 24 and compiled for access by a user. Furthermore, two or more identifier labels may be associated with one another, wherein data corresponding to each of the identifier labels may be correlated so as to provide traceability of the product, as will be described in greater detail herein. More specifically, as shown in FIG. 3, the distributed database management module 24 further includes a correlation module 40 configured to correlate two different sets of data with one another. The correlation module 40 may include custom, proprietary, known and/or after-developed statistical analysis code (or instruction sets), hardware, and/or firmware that are generally well-defined and operable to receive two or more sets of data and identify, at least to a certain extent, a level of correlation and thereby associate the sets of data with one another based on the level of correlation" (Hodges Par. 0057). “More specifically, the movement of an item (e.g., good, product, etc.) is generally tracked based on scanning events of the single barcode that occur along the supply chain (e.g., the barcode label is scanned upon leaving a warehouse, the same barcode label is scanned upon delivery to a store, etc.)” (Hodges Par. 0004). “In some embodiments, the interface provided by the integrated supply chain system 12 may present information related to the product as well as supply chain management to a user 16 via a display operatively coupled to the user device. The product information may include, but is not limited to, traceability information, general information about the product itself, information about specific activities or processes of the supply chain through which the product has gone through or is scheduled to go through, information about members of the supply chain that may be involved with the product, and the like. The interface may further allow the user to interact with the supply chain management and product information (e.g., filter, sort, access different sets of data, etc.) and further communicate with the integrated supply chain management system 12 (e.g., provide input data). Accordingly, the user 16 is able to have real-time visibility to product information, such as traceability information of a product (such as information related to current location, any previous location, and next destination, etc.), as well as supply chain management data and tools (e.g., assignment of specific data to a product, assignment of an identifier label to a product, updating of product data, etc.)” (Hodges Par. 0037). “For example, the integrated supply chain management system 12 is configured to communicate and share data with a device associated with one or more users 16 (hereinafter referred to as user device). The user device may be embodied as any type of device for communicating with the integrated supply chain management system 12 and cloud-based service 14, and/or other user devices over the network 18. For example, at least one of the user devices may be embodied as, without limitation, a computer, a desktop computer, a personal computer (PC), a tablet computer, a laptop computer, a notebook computer, a mobile computing device, a smart phone, a cellular telephone, a handset, a messaging device, a work station, a distributed computing system, a multiprocessor system, a processor-based system, and/or any other computing device configured to store and access data, and/or to execute software and related applications consistent with the present disclosure” (Hodges Par. 0035).
Examiner Note: A message is a description of tracking history and product information that displays once the code is scanned.
identify in a database, a merchant record including the product unit-specific identifier and a merchant identifier of a merchant at the location; "During movement within the supply chain, such as movement from a producer to an exporter, that individual unit of parchment coffee may become blended with other units of parchment coffee in preparation for the milling process, so as to create a blend of green coffee beans to be milled. Accordingly, the distributor may have identifier label associated with the blend of green coffee having a second unique identifier” (Hodges Par. 0077). The method 900 further includes receiving a request for information regarding the product sold or to be sold (operation 920) and outputting one of the pieces of the product content in response to the request (operation 930). The request may be based on request data including, but not limited to, the type of request, type of event associated with the request, location of the event, characteristics of the event, identity of one or more users (e.g., seller, consumer, etc.) associated with the request or event, location of the one or more users, characteristics of the one or more users, identity of the product associated with the request or event, location of the product, characteristics of the product, and a combination thereof” (Hodges Par. 0108). (See Also Hodges Par. 0042).
trace a supply chain path of the unit of the food product through additional records in the database that are linked to the product unit-specific identifier; and “As will be described in greater detail herein, the integrated supply chain management system 12 of the present invention is configured to allow multiple users to contribute to and draw from a shared flow of data, from the point of origin of the product all the way to sale or delivery to the consumer or customer. More specifically, the system 12 is configured to allow members along a supply chain to exchange information with one another along the entire supply chain, thereby integrating traceability data from all members and allowing such data to be visible. The system 12 is configured to establish connections between users that may be associated with one another, or otherwise share a common interest (e.g., each user plays a role in supply chain of a given product), and thus allow access to traceability data based on the established connections. The system 12 of the present invention contrasts with current supply chain systems which generally utilize an “over-the-fence” model. More specifically, current supply chain systems may consist of many independent closed software systems configured to simply pass data along from one member to the next, with little or no flexibility in how the information is collected or shared. Unlike the integrated supply chain management system 12, the current systems generally pass data along in a chain-like fashion, from one link in the chain to the next” (Hodges Par. 0038). “The distributed database management module 24 is configured to manage the exchange of data between users 16 and the system 12 so as to provide traceability of a product as it moves through a supply chain as well as allow supply chain management” (Hodges Par. 0045). (See Also Par. 0042, 0135-0136).
output supply chain derived information on the unit of the food product based on the traced supply chain path to the camera-equipped computing device, “However, it should be noted that the output of visual representation of product information, as described herein, may be provided to any one of the users associated with the supply chain, including, but not limited to, a manufacturer, producer, exporter, retailer, store owner, destination owner, etc. The user may interact with the map by simply selecting one of the points A-D so as to view product details associated with the geographic location selected" (Hodges Par. 0134). “For example, the integrated supply chain management system 12 is configured to communicate and share data with a device associated with one or more users 16 (hereinafter referred to as user device). The user device may be embodied as any type of device for communicating with the integrated supply chain management system 12 and cloud-based service 14, and/or other user devices over the network 18. For example, at least one of the user devices may be embodied as, without limitation, a computer, a desktop computer, a personal computer (PC), a tablet computer, a laptop computer, a notebook computer, a mobile computing device, a smart phone, a cellular telephone, a handset, a messaging device, a work station, a distributed computing system, a multiprocessor system, a processor-based system, and/or any other computing device configured to store and access data, and/or to execute software and related applications consistent with the present disclosure” (Hodges Par. 0035).
wherein the additional records include records of data obtained from supply chain entities including a producer with a producer unit-specific identifier, "The type of product information available at any given point (any of points A-D) may be based on the location associated with that point, the event or activity associated with that point, or other factors. As shown, a user may select point A, at which point the system 12 may further provide product information associated with that particular geographic location. The product information may further include details regarding an event or activity associated with point A. For example, the type of event may include the harvesting and subsequent sale of coffee cherry from the farmer to a producer or the processing of coffee cherry to produce parchment coffee. The details may include the date of harvest or processing, the total quantity harvested or processed, and the like. The product information may further include details about one or more members involved in the event, including details about the farmer and/or producer. The details may include a bio of the farmer or producer, harvest history of the farmer, processing history of the producer, and the like" (Hodges Par. 0135).
an intermediate processor with an intermediate processor identifier, and the merchant with the merchant identifier, "The user may interact with the map so as to obtain specific details about a product. For example, the map of FIG. 15 depicts a visual representation of geographic locations (points A-D) associated with the movement of coffee from a point of origin at point A (e.g., farmer) all the way through to the final exchange of the coffee with a consumer at point D (e.g., sale of cup of coffee). In this instance, the user may be a consumer who has just purchased the cup of coffee and is interested in viewing information about that cup of coffee. However, it should be noted that the output of visual representation of product information, as described herein, may be provided to any one of the users associated with the supply chain, including, but not limited to, a manufacturer, producer, exporter, retailer, store owner, destination owner, etc. The user may interact with the map by simply selecting one of the points A-D so as to view product details associated with the geographic location selected. The type of product information available at any given point (any of points A-D) may be based on the location associated with that point, the event or activity associated with that point, or other factors. As shown, a user may select point A, at which point the system 12 may further provide product information associated with that particular geographic location. Point A may generally correspond to the point of origin of the coffee (e.g., location in which the coffee was grown and harvested and possibly initially processed). Accordingly, the product information of point A may include, for example, the identity of the coffee product (e.g., name of coffee) and the characteristics of the coffee product (e.g., physical attributes of the coffee, including grading or classification, as well as the type of coffee product, which could be coffee cherry or parchment coffee, as point A is the point of origin). The product information may also include the identity of the location as well as characteristics of the location. In the instant example, the location may be a village or town in Ethiopia in which the coffee cherry was grown, harvested, and/or processed. The characteristics of the location may include the operator of the location, overall capacity of the location, current capacity of the location, seasonality of the location, operational status of the location, current weather at the location, and the like. The product information may further include details regarding an event or activity associated with point A. For example, the type of event may include the harvesting and subsequent sale of coffee cherry from the farmer to a producer or the processing of coffee cherry to produce parchment coffee. The details may include the date of harvest or processing, the total quantity harvested or processed, and the like. The product information may further include details about one or more members involved in the event, including details about the farmer and/or producer. The details may include a bio of the farmer or producer, harvest history of the farmer, processing history of the producer, and the like” (Hodges Par. 0135-0136).
PNG
media_image1.png
564
488
media_image1.png
Greyscale
the supply chain derived information on the unit of the food product includes a ledger in the database including the records of data, the ledger including time information and/or location information of the producer, the intermediate processor, and the merchant, “Accordingly, the product database 28 may generally be used for the storage of profiles associated with products, wherein each profile includes information related to an identity of a product or unit of product, characteristics of the product or unit of product, location of the product or unit of product, characteristics of the location. The characteristics of the product or unit of product may include, for example, physical attributes of the product or unit of product, origin of the product or unit of product, destination of the product or unit of product, and a combination thereof. Similarly, the characteristics of the location of the product or unit of product may include the operator of the location, overall capacity of the location, current capacity of the location, seasonality of the location, operational status of the location, current weather at the location, and a combination thereof” (Hodges Par. 0053). “The event database 30 may generally be used for the storage of profiles associated with events tied to any given product or unit of product. An event may include, for example, any activity or process occurring along the supply chain by one or more members of the supply chain. For example, an event may include a transaction between members of the supply chain, such as the sale of coffee cherry from a farmer to a producer, or the sale of a cup of coffee from a retailer to a consumer. Accordingly, each event profile may include transactional data related to an exchange of the product between members of the supply chain, data related to a process or activity involving the product, or the like. The transactional data may include the identity of members of the supply chain associated with the exchange of the product, quantity of product exchanged, price paid for the product, date of the exchange of the product, and a combination thereof” (Hodges Par. 0056).
the producer unit-specific identifier, the intermediate processor identifier, and the merchant identifier are linked via the product unit-specific identifier in the ledger, and “As will be appreciated in the following description, method 500 is applicable in a coffee supply chain, particularly where there are three key transitions where blending of a coffee product occurs. In coffee, particularly of African origin, the first key transition occurs between farmers and producers of the flowchart of FIG. 4A. The system 12 is configured to associate a set of input units of coffee cherry purchased from an arbitrary set of farmers at the primary producer level (the wet mill) (Event 1) to a produced set of output units (parchment coffee) based, at least in part, on transaction date and location. The second key transition occurs between producers and exporters. At the point of export preparation (dry milling), the system 12 is configured to associate an arbitrary set of input units (parchment coffee) to a set of output units (green coffee). The third key transition occurs between at least a distributor (e.g., retailer) and consumer of the flow chart of FIG. 4B. At the retail distributor (e.g. coffee roaster), the system 12 is configured to associate an arbitrary set of input units (green coffee) to a set of output units of finished goods (e.g. 12-oz. bags of roasted coffee). The association of input units to output units in each of the three transitions may be accomplished in one of two ways. In one embodiment, each output unit may be marked with an identical barcode label linking them all to a single batch. In the other embodiment, each output unit of finished goods may be marked with a unique barcode label, opening a whole set of possibilities” (Hodges Par. 75), Figure 4A, Figure 4B
PNG
media_image2.png
582
448
media_image2.png
Greyscale
PNG
media_image3.png
598
428
media_image3.png
Greyscale
Hodges discloses a system for monitoring and tracking products on a supply chain, but fails to disclose the supply chain derived information including a nutrition metric estimated utilizing a machine learning model based on records of data stored in the ledge. Alternatively, Michel discloses determining quality levels of food items. Michel discloses,
the supply chain derived information on the unit of the food product includes a nutrition metric, which is estimated utilizing a machine learning model based on the records of data stored in the ledger. "The brix analyzer 634 can be configured to determine a sugar level of the food item in the image 656. Hyperspectral image data can be used by the analyzer 634 to determine sugar content. For example, the analyzer 634 can implement a machine learning trained model that uses visible and infrared spectral reflectance data to identify and quantify sugar content associated with the food item. The analyzer 634 can generate output data such as a score indicating a sugar level. " (Michel Par. 0168). "For example, the produce image data 190 can include tables that are stored in a data store containing features (e.g., rot, desiccation, probability to determine shelf life, etc.) that have been extracted from images of the produce. In some implementations, the produce image data 190 can include images of an exterior of the produce and/or an interior of the produce. In some implementations, the produce image data 190 can include images of a particular produce at different stages of ripeness and between stages of ripeness. The produce image data 190 can be a robust collection of training data indicating a plurality of different features that may exist and/or develop for the particular produce throughout the produce's lifecycle. The produce image data 190 can also be a collection of images of the same produce from different angles, such that the entire produce can be analyzed fully using the techniques described herein. Moreover, in some implementations, the produce image data 190 can include labels for features, conditions, and/or qualities of the produce. In yet some implementations, such features, conditions, and/or qualities of the produce can be learned using produce image data 190 that does not include labels" (Michel Par. 0075). "Outputs from any one or more of the analyzers can be stored, for each food item 650A-N as analyzer quality scores 652A-N in the food item quality data store 600. In some implementations, outputs from any one or more of the analyzers can also be received as input into one or more of the analyzers, as described throughout this disclosure" (Michel Par. 0151).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the claimed invention to have combined the monitoring and tracking system of a product within a supply chain of Hodges with determining the nutrition metrics of the food of Michel since different quality metrics can impact consumer purchasing decisions (Michel Par. 0003).
Regarding Claim 12,
Hodges discloses, (Currently amended) A computerized method for achieving traceability in a food commodity supply chain, comprising:
receiving, from a camera-equipped computing device, a message indicating an optical code associated with a unit of a food product has been scanned by the camera- equipped computing device at a location, the message including a product unit-specific identifier encoded in the optical code; “For example, when an identifier label is scanned and the digital representation is transmitted to the system 12, data associated with the identifier label is retrieved by the distributed database management module 24 and compiled for access by a user. Furthermore, two or more identifier labels may be associated with one another, wherein data corresponding to each of the identifier labels may be correlated so as to provide traceability of the product, as will be described in greater detail herein. More specifically, as shown in FIG. 3, the distributed database management module 24 further includes a correlation module 40 configured to correlate two different sets of data with one another. The correlation module 40 may include custom, proprietary, known and/or after-developed statistical analysis code (or instruction sets), hardware, and/or firmware that are generally well-defined and operable to receive two or more sets of data and identify, at least to a certain extent, a level of correlation and thereby associate the sets of data with one another based on the level of correlation" (Hodges Par. 0057). In some embodiments, the interface provided by the integrated supply chain system 12 may present information related to the product as well as supply chain management to a user 16 via a display operatively coupled to the user device. The product information may include, but is not limited to, traceability information, general information about the product itself, information about specific activities or processes of the supply chain through which the product has gone through or is scheduled to go through, information about members of the supply chain that may be involved with the product, and the like. The interface may further allow the user to interact with the supply chain management and product information (e.g., filter, sort, access different sets of data, etc.) and further communicate with the integrated supply chain management system 12 (e.g., provide input data). Accordingly, the user 16 is able to have real-time visibility to product information, such as traceability information of a product (such as information related to current location, any previous location, and next destination, etc.), as well as supply chain management data and tools (e.g., assignment of specific data to a product, assignment of an identifier label to a product, updating of product data, etc.)” (Hodges Par. 0037). “For example, the integrated supply chain management system 12 is configured to communicate and share data with a device associated with one or more users 16 (hereinafter referred to as user device). The user device may be embodied as any type of device for communicating with the integrated supply chain management system 12 and cloud-based service 14, and/or other user devices over the network 18. For example, at least one of the user devices may be embodied as, without limitation, a computer, a desktop computer, a personal computer (PC), a tablet computer, a laptop computer, a notebook computer, a mobile computing device, a smart phone, a cellular telephone, a handset, a messaging device, a work station, a distributed computing system, a multiprocessor system, a processor-based system, and/or any other computing device configured to store and access data, and/or to execute software and related applications consistent with the present disclosure” (Hodges Par. 0035).
identifying in a database, a merchant record including the product unit-specific identifier and a merchant identifier of a merchant at the location; "During movement within the supply chain, such as movement from a producer to an exporter, that individual unit of parchment coffee may become blended with other units of parchment coffee in preparation for the milling process, so as to create a blend of green coffee beans to be milled. Accordingly, the distributor may have identifier label associated with the blend of green coffee having a second unique identifier” (Hodges Par. 0077). The method 900 further includes receiving a request for information regarding the product sold or to be sold (operation 920) and outputting one of the pieces of the product content in response to the request (operation 930). The request may be based on request data including, but not limited to, the type of request, type of event associated with the request, location of the event, characteristics of the event, identity of one or more users (e.g., seller, consumer, etc.) associated with the request or event, location of the one or more users, characteristics of the one or more users, identity of the product associated with the request or event, location of the product, characteristics of the product, and a combination thereof” (Hodges Par. 0108). (See Also Hodges Par. 0042).
tracing a supply chain path of the unit of the food product through additional records in the database that are linked to the product unit-specific identifier; and “As will be described in greater detail herein, the integrated supply chain management system 12 of the present invention is configured to allow multiple users to contribute to and draw from a shared flow of data, from the point of origin of the product all the way to sale or delivery to the consumer or customer. More specifically, the system 12 is configured to allow members along a supply chain to exchange information with one another along the entire supply chain, thereby integrating traceability data from all members and allowing such data to be visible. The system 12 is configured to establish connections between users that may be associated with one another, or otherwise share a common interest (e.g., each user plays a role in supply chain of a given product), and thus allow access to traceability data based on the established connections. The system 12 of the present invention contrasts with current supply chain systems which generally utilize an “over-the-fence” model. More specifically, current supply chain systems may consist of many independent closed software systems configured to simply pass data along from one member to the next, with little or no flexibility in how the information is collected or shared. Unlike the integrated supply chain management system 12, the current systems generally pass data along in a chain-like fashion, from one link in the chain to the next” (Hodges Par. 0038). “The distributed database management module 24 is configured to manage the exchange of data between users 16 and the system 12 so as to provide traceability of a product as it moves through a supply chain as well as allow supply chain management” (Hodges Par. 0045). (See Also Par. 0135-0136).
outputting supply chain derived information on the unit of the food product based on the traced supply chain path to the camera-equipped computing device, wherein “However, it should be noted that the output of visual representation of product information, as described herein, may be provided to any one of the users associated with the supply chain, including, but not limited to, a manufacturer, producer, exporter, retailer, store owner, destination owner, etc. The user may interact with the map by simply selecting one of the points A-D so as to view product details associated with the geographic location selected" (Hodges Par. 0134). “For example, the integrated supply chain management system 12 is configured to communicate and share data with a device associated with one or more users 16 (hereinafter referred to as user device). The user device may be embodied as any type of device for communicating with the integrated supply chain management system 12 and cloud-based service 14, and/or other user devices over the network 18. For example, at least one of the user devices may be embodied as, without limitation, a computer, a desktop computer, a personal computer (PC), a tablet computer, a laptop computer, a notebook computer, a mobile computing device, a smart phone, a cellular telephone, a handset, a messaging device, a work station, a distributed computing system, a multiprocessor system, a processor-based system, and/or any other computing device configured to store and access data, and/or to execute software and related applications consistent with the present disclosure” (Hodges Par. 0035).
the additional records include records of data obtained from supply chain entities including a producer with a producer unit-specific identifier, "The type of product information available at any given point (any of points A-D) may be based on the location associated with that point, the event or activity associated with that point, or other factors. As shown, a user may select point A, at which point the system 12 may further provide product information associated with that particular geographic location. The product information may further include details regarding an event or activity associated with point A. For example, the type of event may include the harvesting and subsequent sale of coffee cherry from the farmer to a producer or the processing of coffee cherry to produce parchment coffee. The details may include the date of harvest or processing, the total quantity harvested or processed, and the like. The product information may further include details about one or more members involved in the event, including details about the farmer and/or producer. The details may include a bio of the farmer or producer, harvest history of the farmer, processing history of the producer, and the like" (Hodges Par. 0135).
an intermediate processor with an intermediate processor identifier, and the merchant with the merchant identifier, "The user may interact with the map so as to obtain specific details about a product. For example, the map of FIG. 15 depicts a visual representation of geographic locations (points A-D) associated with the movement of coffee from a point of origin at point A (e.g., farmer) all the way through to the final exchange of the coffee with a consumer at point D (e.g., sale of cup of coffee). In this instance, the user may be a consumer who has just purchased the cup of coffee and is interested in viewing information about that cup of coffee. However, it should be noted that the output of visual representation of product information, as described herein, may be provided to any one of the users associated with the supply chain, including, but not limited to, a manufacturer, producer, exporter, retailer, store owner, destination owner, etc. The user may interact with the map by simply selecting one of the points A-D so as to view product details associated with the geographic location selected. The type of product information available at any given point (any of points A-D) may be based on the location associated with that point, the event or activity associated with that point, or other factors. As shown, a user may select point A, at which point the system 12 may further provide product information associated with that particular geographic location. Point A may generally correspond to the point of origin of the coffee (e.g., location in which the coffee was grown and harvested and possibly initially processed). Accordingly, the product information of point A may include, for example, the identity of the coffee product (e.g., name of coffee) and the characteristics of the coffee product (e.g., physical attributes of the coffee, including grading or classification, as well as the type of coffee product, which could be coffee cherry or parchment coffee, as point A is the point of origin). The product information may also include the identity of the location as well as characteristics of the location. In the instant example, the location may be a village or town in Ethiopia in which the coffee cherry was grown, harvested, and/or processed. The characteristics of the location may include the operator of the location, overall capacity of the location, current capacity of the location, seasonality of the location, operational status of the location, current weather at the location, and the like. The product information may further include details regarding an event or activity associated with point A. For example, the type of event may include the harvesting and subsequent sale of coffee cherry from the farmer to a producer or the processing of coffee cherry to produce parchment coffee. The details may include the date of harvest or processing, the total quantity harvested or processed, and the like. The product information may further include details about one or more members involved in the event, including details about the farmer and/or producer. The details may include a bio of the farmer or producer, harvest history of the farmer, processing history of the producer, and the like” (Hodges Par. 0135-0136).
PNG
media_image4.png
341
394
media_image4.png
Greyscale
the supply chain derived information on the unit of the food product includes a ledger in the database including the records of data, the ledger including time information and/or location information of the producer, the intermediate processor, and the merchant, “Accordingly, the product database 28 may generally be used for the storage of profiles associated with products, wherein each profile includes information related to an identity of a product or unit of product, characteristics of the product or unit of product, location of the product or unit of product, characteristics of the location. The characteristics of the product or unit of product may include, for example, physical attributes of the product or unit of product, origin of the product or unit of product, destination of the product or unit of product, and a combination thereof. Similarly, the characteristics of the location of the product or unit of product may include the operator of the location, overall capacity of the location, current capacity of the location, seasonality of the location, operational status of the location, current weather at the location, and a combination thereof” (Hodges Par. 0053). “The event database 30 may generally be used for the storage of profiles associated with events tied to any given product or unit of product. An event may include, for example, any activity or process occurring along the supply chain by one or more members of the supply chain. For example, an event may include a transaction between members of the supply chain, such as the sale of coffee cherry from a farmer to a producer, or the sale of a cup of coffee from a retailer to a consumer. Accordingly, each event profile may include transactional data related to an exchange of the product between members of the supply chain, data related to a process or activity involving the product, or the like. The transactional data may include the identity of members of the supply chain associated with the exchange of the product, quantity of product exchanged, price paid for the product, date of the exchange of the product, and a combination thereof” (Hodges Par. 0056).
the producer unit-specific identifier, the intermediate processor identifier, and the merchant identifier are linked via the product unit-specific identifier in the ledger, and “As will be appreciated in the following description, method 500 is applicable in a coffee supply chain, particularly where there are three key transitions where blending of a coffee product occurs. In coffee, particularly of African origin, the first key transition occurs between farmers and producers of the flowchart of FIG. 4A. The system 12 is configured to associate a set of input units of coffee cherry purchased from an arbitrary set of farmers at the primary producer level (the wet mill) (Event 1) to a produced set of output units (parchment coffee) based, at least in part, on transaction date and location. The second key transition occurs between producers and exporters. At the point of export preparation (dry milling), the system 12 is configured to associate an arbitrary set of input units (parchment coffee) to a set of output units (green coffee). The third key transition occurs between at least a distributor (e.g., retailer) and consumer of the flow chart of FIG. 4B. At the retail distributor (e.g. coffee roaster), the system 12 is configured to associate an arbitrary set of input units (green coffee) to a set of output units of finished goods (e.g. 12-oz. bags of roasted coffee). The association of input units to output units in each of the three transitions may be accomplished in one of two ways. In one embodiment, each output unit may be marked with an identical barcode label linking them all to a single batch. In the other embodiment, each output unit of finished goods may be marked with a unique barcode label, opening a whole set of possibilities” (Hodges Par. 0075), Figure 4A, Figure 4B
PNG
media_image5.png
315
410
media_image5.png
Greyscale
PNG
media_image6.png
335
469
media_image6.png
Greyscale
Hodges discloses a system for monitoring and tracking products on a supply chain, but fails to disclose the supply chain derived information including a nutrition metric estimated utilizing a machine learning model based on records of data stored in the ledge. Alternatively, Michel discloses determining quality levels of food items. Michel discloses,
the supply chain derived information on the unit of the food product includes a nutrition metric, which is estimated utilizing a machine learning model based on the records of data stored in the ledger. “The brix analyzer 634 can be configured to determine a sugar level of the food item in the image 656. Hyperspectral image data can be used by the analyzer 634 to determine sugar content. For example, the analyzer 634 can implement a machine learning trained model that uses visible and infrared spectral reflectance data to identify and quantify sugar content associated with the food item. The analyzer 634 can generate output data such as a score indicating a sugar level. " (Michel Par. 0168). "For example, the produce image data 190 can include tables that are stored in a data store containing features (e.g., rot, desiccation, probability to determine shelf life, etc.) that have been extracted from images of the produce. In some implementations, the produce image data 190 can include images of an exterior of the produce and/or an interior of the produce. In some implementations, the produce image data 190 can include images of a particular produce at different stages of ripeness and between stages of ripeness. The produce image data 190 can be a robust collection of training data indicating a plurality of different features that may exist and/or develop for the particular produce throughout the produce's lifecycle. The produce image data 190 can also be a collection of images of the same produce from different angles, such that the entire produce can be analyzed fully using the techniques described herein. Moreover, in some implementations, the produce image data 190 can include labels for features, conditions, and/or qualities of the produce. In yet some implementations, such features, conditions, and/or qualities of the produce can be learned using produce image data 190 that does not include labels" (Michel Par. 0075). "Outputs from any one or more of the analyzers can be stored, for each food item 650A-N as analyzer quality scores 652A-N in the food item quality data store 600. In some implementations, outputs from any one or more of the analyzers can also be received as input into one or more of the analyzers, as described throughout this disclosure" (Michel Par. 0151).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the claimed invention to have combined the monitoring and tracking system of a product within a supply chain of Hodges with determining the nutrition metrics of the food of Michel since different quality metrics can impact consumer purchasing decisions (Michel Par. 0003).
Regarding Claim 7, and Claim 17
The combination of Hodges and Michel discloses the computing system of claim 1 and Claim 12, as shown above. Hodges further discloses, wherein the optical code associated with the unit of the food product includes a barcode, a Quick Response (QR) code, and/or an alphanumeric code. "That batch of green coffee includes a first unique identifier associated therewith, such as, for example, a digital representation of a machine-readable label. The first unique identifier may include, but is not limited to, text, graphics, one or more images, a linear barcode, a matrix barcode (e.g., QR code), or the like. Accordingly, in one embodiment, the batch of coffee may be marked, or otherwise be associated, with an identifier label, such as