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 .
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and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114.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 10 March 2026 has been entered.
This Continued Examination Office Action is in reply to the Request for Continued Examination filed on 10 March 2026.
Claims 2, 31 have been amended.
Claims 2-5 and 7-31 are currently pending and have been examined.
Response to Amendment
In the previous office action, Claims 2-5 and 7-31 were rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 because the claimed invention is directed to non-statutory subject matter. Applicants have amended Claims 2-5 and 7-31 to provide statutory support and the rejection is withdrawn. However Claims 2-5 and 7-31 are rejected for double patenting under this statute. See below for further explanation.
Response to Arguments
Applicants’ arguments filed 10 March 2026 have been fully considered and are persuasive except a new ground of rejection for double patenting is introduced.
Double Patenting
Claims 2-5 and 7-31 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 as claiming the same invention as that of Claims 1-24 of prior U.S. Patent No. 11,775,891. This is a non-statutory double patenting rejection.
The non-statutory double patenting rejection is based on a judicially created doctrine grounded in public policy (a policy reflected in the statute) so as to prevent the unjustified or improper timewise extension of the “right to exclude” granted by a patent and to prevent possible harassment by multiple assignees. A non-statutory obviousness-type double patenting rejection is appropriate where the conflicting claims are not identical, but at least one examined application claim is not patentably distinct from the reference claim(s) because the examined application claim is either anticipated by, or would have been obvious over, the reference claim(s). See, e.g., In re Berg, 140 F.3d 1428, 46 USPQ2d 1226 (Fed. Cir. 1998); In re Goodman, 11 F.3d 1046, 29 USPQ2d 2010 (Fed. Cir. 1993); In re Longi, 759 F.2d 887, 225 USPQ 645 (Fed. Cir. 1985); In re Van Ornum, 686 F.2d 937, 214 USPQ 761 (CCPA 1982); In re Vogel, 422 F.2d 438, 164 USPQ 619 (CCPA 1970); and In re Thorington, 418 F.2d 528, 163 USPQ 644 (CCPA 1969).
A timely filed terminal disclaimer in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(c) or 1.321(d) may be used to overcome an actual or provisional rejection based on a non-statutory double patenting ground provided the conflicting application or patent either is shown to be commonly owned with this application, or claims an invention made as a result of activities undertaken within the scope of a joint research agreement. Effective January 1, 1994, a registered attorney or agent of record may sign a terminal disclaimer. A terminal disclaimer signed by the assignee must fully comply with 37 CFR 3.73(b).
Claims 2-5 and 7-31 are rejected on the ground of non-statutory double patenting over Claims 1-24 of U. S. Patent No. 11,775,891 since the claims, if allowed, would improperly extend the "right to exclude" already granted in the patent. The subject matter claimed in the instant application is fully disclosed in the patent and is covered by the patent since the patent and the application are claiming common subject matter, as follows: In the instant application, Claims 2-5 and 7-31 recite:
“a world model embodied as a knowledge graph representing relationships among data elements of an enterprise data domain, wherein the world model is a semantic representation of enterprise-specific information that organizes data elements based on logical, hierarchical, and semantic relationships;
an artificial intelligence agent platform having a set of system services that operates the world model to facilitate responding to a query, ingesting unstructured data, and enabling enterprise domain-directed dialogue with a user via a natural language speech processing system, wherein the artificial intelligence agent platform generates a query-specific classification based on captured context comprising at least one of a user role, user location or user activity and wherein the classification links the query to a portion of a knowledge graph and directs retrieval of enterprise specific information; and
an integration engine deployed with an enterprise system that facilitates interaction between the set of system services and enterprise specific information sources of the enterprise system to respond to queries about enterprise specific information from the user,
wherein the artificial intelligence agent platform, in response to a query, accesses the world model and activates the integration engine to provide access to a corresponding source of enterprise specific information based on a linked data node in the world model, and
wherein the integration engine, upon being activated by the artificial intelligence agent platform, establishes a connection with the corresponding source of enterprise specific information, retrieves enterprise specific information, and provides the retrieved enterprise specific information to the artificial intelligence agent platform for incorporation into a response to the user”
which is the same or substantially the same as the limitations recited in Claims 1-24 of U. S. Patent No. 11,775,891.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to Applicant's disclosure:
Masksood et al. (US 2017/0068693)
Ajmera et al. (US 10,049,152)
Wang et al. (WO 2015/066657 A1)
Malik, Kaleem Razzaq, et al. "Student query trend assessment with semantical annotation and artificial intelligent multi-agents." Eurasia Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education 13.7 (2017): 3893-3917.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to THOMAS L MANSFIELD whose telephone number is (571)270-1904. The examiner can normally be reached M-Thurs, alt. Fri. (9-6).
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THOMAS L. MANSFIELD
Examiner
Art Unit 3623
/THOMAS L MANSFIELD/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3624