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 .
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and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114.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 1/8/2026 has been entered.
Claims 1-4, 6, 8-11, 13, 15-19 are pending and have been rejected.
Claims 5, 7, 12, 14 and 20 are cancelled.
Claims 1, 8, and 15 are amended.
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.
Step 1: The claims 1-4 and 6 are a system, claims 8-11 and 13 are a method, and claims 15-19 are a computer readable medium. Thus, each independent claim, on its face, is directed to one of the statutory categories of 35 U.S.C. §101. However, the claims 1-4, 6, 8-11, 13, 15-19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 because the claimed invention is directed to an abstract idea without significantly more.
Step 2A Prong 1: The independent claims (1, 8 and 15, taking claim 1 as a representative claim) recite:
A Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) offer finder service system comprising: a database, at least one processor coupled to the database; and a memory device storing computer-executable instructions thereon, the computer-executable instructions causing the at least one processor to:
receive, from a BNPL lender server, BNPL loan product data associated with a BNPL loan available from a BNPL lender, the BNPL loan product data including one or more of the following: a product, a product category, and a bank identification number (BIN);
store the BNPL loan product data in one or more tables on the database, the one or more tables including: a product name table storing product records, each product record identified by a primary key and storing a product SKU associated with a product name; and a product category table storing a product category and a foreign key referencing the primary key of the product name table;
receive a search query from a consumer computing device associated with a consumer, the search query including product data;
store the product data from the search query in one or more additional tables on the database;
receive, from a merchant server, a BNPL offer corresponding to the BNPL loan product data associated with the BNPL lender, the BNPL offer including a merchant location;
store the BNPL offer and merchant location in the database;
identify a location of the consumer computing device, the consumer computing device including a BNPL offer finder service application configured to provide the location of the consumer computing device;
determine that the product data in the search query matches at least a portion of the BNPL loan product data by:
comparing a product attribute of the product data to a product attribute field stored in at least one of the product name table and the product category table, an
determining that a distance between the identified location of the consumer computing device and the merchant location is within a predefined threshold distance;
match the BIN or BIN range of the BNPL loan product data to a BIN associated with a consumer payment card stored with a BNPL offer finder service account or profile for the consumer;
and based on the determination and the matching, transmit an alert message to the consumer computing device, the alert message including information identifying the BNPL loan.
These limitations, except for the italicized portions, under their broadest reasonable interpretations, recite certain methods of organizing human activity for managing personal behavior or relationships or interactions between people (including social activities, teaching, and following rules or instructions) as well as commercial or legal interactions (including agreements in the form of contracts; legal obligations; advertising, marketing or sales activities or behaviors; business relations). The claimed invention recites steps for identifying buy now pay later loans and transmitting an alert to a user. The steps under its broadest reasonable interpretation specifically fall under sales activities. The Examiner notes that although the claim limitations are summarized, the analysis regarding subject matter eligibility considers the entirety of the claim and all of the claim elements individually, as a whole, and in ordered combination.
Prong 2: This judicial exception is not integrated into a practical application. In particular, the claims recite the additional elements of:
A Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) offer finder service system comprising: a database, at least one processor coupled to the database; and a memory device storing computer-executable instructions thereon, the computer-executable instructions causing the at least one processor to: (claim 1)
A computer-implemented method comprising: (claim 8)
A non-transitory computer-readable storage media having computer-executable instructions stored thereon, wherein when executed by at least one processor the computer-executable instructions cause the at least one processor to: (claim 15)
from a BNPL lender server
on the database;
a consumer computing device
a merchant server
The additional elements emphasized above are recited at a high-level of generality (i.e., as a generic processor performing a generic computer function of processing data) such that it amounts no more than mere instructions to apply the exception using a generic computer component. The limitations do not impose any meaningful limits on practicing the abstract idea, and therefore do not integrate the abstract idea into a practical application – MPEP 2106.05(f).
Accordingly, these additional elements when considered individually or as a whole do not integrate the abstract idea into a practical application because they do not impose any meaningful limits on practicing the abstract idea. The independent claims are directed to an abstract idea.
Step 2B: The claims do not include additional elements that are sufficient to amount to significantly more than the judicial exception. As discussed with respect to Step 2A Prong two, the additional elements in the claims amount to no more than mere instructions to apply the judicial exception using a generic computer component.
Even when considered as an ordered combination, the additional elements of claim 1, 8, and 15 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, 8, and 15 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, 8, and 15 are ineligible.
Dependent claims 2-7, 9-14 and 16-20 when analyzed as a whole, are held to be patent ineligible under 35 U.S.C. §101 because the additional recited limitations fail to establish that the claims are not directed to the same abstract idea of Independent Claims 1, 9 and 16 without significantly more.
Claim 2 recites The BNPL offer finder service system in accordance with claim 1, the computer-executable instructions further causing the at least one processor to: determine that the consumer is registered for an BNPL offer finder service; and based on determining that the consumer is registered, determine whether the consumer selected to receive the alert message. The limitation merely further limits the abstract idea and does not integrate the judicial exception into a practical application.
Claim 3 recites The BNPL offer finder service system in accordance with claim 2, the computer-executable instructions further causing the at least one processor, as part of determining whether the consumer selected to receive the alert message, to: retrieve a BNPL offer finder service account or profile for the consumer from the database; and analyze information and data stored in the BNPL offer finder service account or profile to determine whether the data or information indicates that the consumer selected to receive the alert message. The limitation merely further limits the abstract idea and does not integrate the judicial exception into a practical application.
Claim 4 recites The BNPL offer finder service system in accordance with claim 2,
the computer-executable instructions further causing the at least one processor, as part of determining that the product data in the search query matches at least a portion of the BNPL loan product data, to: retrieve a BNPL offer finder service account or profile for the consumer from the database; analyze information and data stored in the BNPL offer finder service account or profile; and determine whether the data or information indicates that the consumer selected to receive the alert message corresponding to a BIN associated with a consumer payment card stored with the BNPL offer finder service account or profile for the consumer. The limitation merely further limits the abstract idea and does not integrate the judicial exception into a practical application.
Claim 6 recites The BNPL offer finder system in accordance with claim 1, the computer-executable instructions further causing the at least one processor to generate the alert message, including formatting the alert message in a format that can be received by a consumer computing device. The limitation merely further limits the abstract idea and does not integrate the judicial exception into a practical application.
Claims 9-11, 13, and 16-20 recite parallel claim language and there are rejected for the same reasons set forth above. For these reasons claims 1-4, 6, 8-11, 13 and 15-19 are rejected under 35 USC 101.
Subject Matter Free of Prior Art
Claims 1, 8 and 15 are determined to have overcome the prior art of rejection and are free of prior art, however the claims remain rejected under 35 USC 101, as set forth above. All dependent claims are also free of prior art by virtue of dependency, but remain rejected under 35 USC 101.
Taking amended claim 1 as a representative claim, the claims as amended are found to overcome the prior art rejection for the reasons set forth below.
Claim 1 now recites the additional claimed features of:
store the BNPL loan product data in one or more tables on the database, the one or more tables including:
a product name table storing product records, each product record identified by a primary key and storing a product SKU associated with a product name; and
a product category table storing a product category and a foreign key referencing the primary key of the product name table;
receive a search query from a consumer computing device associated with a consumer, the search query including product data;
store the product data from the search query in one or more additional tables on the database;
receive, from a merchant server, a BNPL offer corresponding to the BNPL loan product data associated with the BNPL lender, the BNPL offer including a merchant location;
store the BNPL offer and merchant location in the database;
identify a location of the consumer computing device, the consumer computing device including a BNPL offer finder service application configured to provide the location of the consumer computing device;
determine that the product data in the search query matches at least a portion of the BNPL loan product data by: comparing a product attribute of the product data to a product attribute field stored in at least one of the product name table and the product category table, and determining that a distance between the identified location of the consumer computing device and the merchant location is within a predefined threshold distance;
match the BIN or BIN range of the BNPL loan product data to a BIN associated with a consumer payment card stored with a BNPL offer finder service account or profile for the consumer;
The closest prior art was found to be as follows:
Anderson (US 20230004951) discloses [0067] In general, BNPL offer 105 is an offer for a BNPL product intended to be used for a single purchase. In one embodiment, BNPL offer 105 may include an incentive such as a discount percentage, a free gift, a coupon, a surprise gift, a surprise reward, or the like. As stated herein, BNPL offer 105 may be located on a physical item or received by the customer's mobile device, e.g., via a beacon broadcast, WiFi broadcast, email, text, SMS, social media alert, app alert, or the like. In yet another embodiment, BNPL offer 105 may be provided by an app on the customer's mobile device once the mobile device is within a certain vicinity of the store. ([0094] In one embodiment, database 227 stores a plurality of customer credit accounts, a plurality of customer reward accounts and/or offers, coupons, and the like.); [0091] In one embodiment, BNPL product provider 230 and/or BNPL producer 360 are computing systems similar to computer system 900 described in detail in the FIG. 9 discussion herein. In one embodiment, BNPL producer 360 includes a customer account identifier 261, a BNPL product builder 262, a token generator 263, and a BNPL product generator 265. [0041] In general, a BNPL application obtains identification information about a customer and uses the identification information to make a BNPL determination. For example, if a customer wants to obtain BNPL financing, the customer would have to provide identifying information for the customer, the customer's mobile device, or a combination thereof. The identifying information is used to identify a customer's existing credit account and, in one embodiment, perform a credit check of the customer's credit history and qualifications based on the BNPL issuer's criteria. However the reference does not disclose the invention as claimed, including limitations of the one or more tables including: a product name table storing product records, each product record identified by a primary key and storing a product SKU associated with a product name; and a product category table storing a product category and a foreign key referencing the primary key of the product name table; store the product data from the search query in one or more additional tables on the database; receive, from a merchant server, a BNPL offer corresponding to the BNPL loan product data associated with the BNPL lender, the BNPL offer including a merchant location; store the BNPL offer and merchant location in the database; identify a location of the consumer computing device, the consumer computing device including a BNPL offer finder service application configured to provide the location of the consumer computing device; determine that the product data in the search query matches at least a portion of the BNPL loan product data by: comparing a product attribute of the product data to a product attribute field stored in at least one of the product name table and the product category table as required by the claim.
Shah (US 11818115) discloses [Col. 27 lines 20-40] (114) The Domain Based Data Architecture 280 provides the platform's 200 data repository in the form of a domain driven data architecture that uses a balance of normalized and de-normalized data to cluster each user's workflow journey(s) information into databases and tables with keys to connect them. For example, domain based data architecture 280 may maintain, within one or more databases, data for each of a plurality of domains 281. As an example, the domain based data architecture 280 may maintain within one or more databases master data, lifecycle data, and reference data for each of the domains 281. Master data may include, among other data, store entity data, persona data, and product data. Lifecycle data may include data and information relevant to any workflow journey, sub-journey, and/or workflow steps. Such data and information may include, for example, identity provider data, marketing data, origination data, underwriting data, processing data, issuance data, disbursements data, servicing data, and document automation data, among other examples. Reference data may include, among other data, system reference data, product reference data, authentication and authorization reference data, document reference data, template reference data, and/or any other reference data. [Col. 46 lines 50-65] As indicated above, the exemplary workflow 930 shown in FIG. 9 pertains to a complex real-time lending product (e.g., a unified lending journey). This particular workflow 930 comprises the following workflow steps: Entities (e.g., access to framework), Product (e.g., selection, definition, etc. of any type of lending product such as (without limit) student, auto, buy-now-pay-later. However the reference does not disclose the claimed invention, including receive, from a merchant server, a BNPL offer corresponding to the BNPL loan product data associated with the BNPL lender, the BNPL offer including a merchant location; store the BNPL offer and merchant location in the database; identify a location of the consumer computing device, the consumer computing device including a BNPL offer finder service application configured to provide the location of the consumer computing device; determine that the product data in the search query matches at least a portion of the BNPL loan product data by: comparing a product attribute of the product data to a product attribute field stored in at least one of the product name table and the product category table, and determining that a distance between the identified location of the consumer computing device and the merchant location is within a predefined threshold distance as required by the claim.
Blackhurst (US 20110191181) discloses [0063] In one embodiment, once the product or merchant is identified the customer 6 can choose to add or delete it from the customer's wish list though the Add/Delete icon 754. If the customer 6 decides to keep the item on the wish list, as illustrated by blocks 604 and 605 of FIG. 6, in some embodiments of the invention, the customer 6 assigns preferences and notification alerts to the products, types of products, or merchants listed in the wish list. [0081] The offers identified by the merchant offer program application 10 in block 210 and provided to the customer 6 through the local merchant offer program application 11, based on the content the customer 6 was searching, viewing, or had identified in a wish list, are determined in a number of ways. In exemplary embodiments, the financial institution will have in place arrangements with merchants that allow the financial institution to provide certain products to customers through the merchant offer program application 10 at discounted prices. The financial institution will display the various products that are the subject of a discount coupon, rebate, rewards etc. The products will normally be displayed with the items carrying the greatest discount, coupon, rebate, reward, etc. first. The discount, coupon, rebate, reward, etc. can be the merchant's normal offer or can be the subject of a separate arrangement with the financial institution. In other embodiments, the merchant may pay a fee to the financial institution per month, week, etc., or a flat fee, etc., in exchange for the financial institution showing one or more of the merchant offers to customers 6. The size of discounts provided, and in some embodiments the fees paid by merchants, can be based on the number of hits the offer/website of the merchant receives, the number times the offer is displayed, the number of customers who accept the offer by making a purchase, and/or the rank of the offer, etc. In some embodiments of the invention the merchant may not offer the product at a discount, but instead the financial institution may subsidize the offer by providing the discount itself. In this instance, the financial institution would pay the merchant the full price of the product at the time of sale, but debit the customer account a discounted price or rebate the customers at some future point in time. The financial institution could make up for the discounts by charging the merchants a fee to display the offer to the customer 6 or by taking payments from the merchant for all of the discounts on offers provided within a certain time period. However the reference does not disclose the claimed invention including, receive, from a merchant server, a BNPL offer corresponding to the BNPL loan product data associated with the BNPL lender, the BNPL offer including a merchant location; store the BNPL offer and merchant location in the database; identify a location of the consumer computing device, the consumer computing device including a BNPL offer finder service application configured to provide the location of the consumer computing device; determine that the product data in the search query matches at least a portion of the BNPL loan product data by: comparing a product attribute of the product data to a product attribute field stored in at least one of the product name table and the product category table, and determining that a distance between the identified location of the consumer computing device and the merchant location is within a predefined threshold distance as required by the claim.
Lyman (US 2015005197) discloses a merchant device (230) with a pre-authorization application (240) and a payment provider service (260) in communication with a merchant store. However, the reference does not disclose the claimed invention including, the one or more tables including: a product name table storing product records, each product record identified by a primary key and storing a product SKU associated with a product name; and a product category table storing a product category and a foreign key referencing the primary key of the product name table, as required by the claims.
Evans (US 20200082385) discloses [0142] At step 330, as an example, a user may purchase a set of furniture in store for $1,200 and the payment is successfully processed on the user's credit card, which has been registered during step 310. Cardlink program can search for purchases over $200 and match an opt-in consumer with an opt-in Merchant. The user may receive a push message or e-mail on their mobile device in real-time or near real-time, asking for confirmation of the request to spread the payment over 12 months. Once user has agreed to the spread payment plan, Cardlink may send, or credit $1,100 back to the credit card, thus an initial payment of $100 is made.[0151] At step 502, Merchant IDs and offers are registered with card network via Cardlink API with permission so one or more sets of transaction data can be passed back to system 100. [0152] In some embodiments, the transaction data may include credit card digits, credit card owner, merchant name, merchant ID, merchant location, merchant contact details, merchant category, transaction ID, SKU, transaction amount, transaction currency, a bank identification number (BIN) and an Authorization Code. [0158] At step 517, a push notification may be sent to a registered customer based on transaction data such as matching MID, transaction amount, and/or transaction timestamp. However, the reference does not disclose the claimed invention including, the one or more tables including: a product name table storing product records, each product record identified by a primary key and storing a product SKU associated with a product name; and a product category table storing a product category and a foreign key referencing the primary key of the product name table, as required by the claims.
The closest NPL of record is "Factors Analysis of Interest in Using Pay Later in E-commerce Applications Using Principal Component Analysis and Maximum Likelihood Estimation Methods" which discloses the factors that influence customers to use pay later options and other advantages of payment plans in the ecommerce space. However, does not disclose the claimed invention.
It was found that no references alone or in combination, neither anticipates, reasonable teaches, nor renders obvious the below noted features of Applicant’s invention. The features of claim 1 (and parallel claims 8 and 15) in combination that overcome the prior art are:
store the BNPL loan product data in one or more tables on the database, the one or more tables including:
a product name table storing product records, each product record identified by a primary key and storing a product SKU associated with a product name; and
a product category table storing a product category and a foreign key referencing the primary key of the product name table;
receive a search query from a consumer computing device associated with a consumer, the search query including product data;
store the product data from the search query in one or more additional tables on the database;
receive, from a merchant server, a BNPL offer corresponding to the BNPL loan product data associated with the BNPL lender, the BNPL offer including a merchant location;
store the BNPL offer and merchant location in the database;
identify a location of the consumer computing device, the consumer computing device including a BNPL offer finder service application configured to provide the location of the consumer computing device;
determine that the product data in the search query matches at least a portion of the BNPL loan product data by: comparing a product attribute of the product data to a product attribute field stored in at least one of the product name table and the product category table, and determining that a distance between the identified location of the consumer computing device and the merchant location is within a predefined threshold distance;
match the BIN or BIN range of the BNPL loan product data to a BIN associated with a consumer payment card stored with a BNPL offer finder service account or profile for the consumer;
Therefore, none of the cited references disclose or render obvious each and every feature of the claimed invention and the claimed invention is determined to be free of the prior art. Although individually the claimed features could be taught, any combination of references would teach the claimed limitations using a piecemeal analysis, since references would only be combined and deemed obvious based on knowledge gleaned from the applicant's disclosure. Such a reconstruction is improper (i.e., hindsight reasoning). See In re McLaughlin, 443 F.2d 1392, 170 USPQ 209 (CCPA 1971). The examiner emphasizes that it is the interrelationship of the limitations that renders these claims free of the prior art/additional art.
Therefore, it is hereby asserted by the Examiner that, in light of the above, that the claims are free of prior art as the references do not anticipate the claims and do not render obvious any further modification of the references to a person of ordinary skill in art.
Response to Arguments
With respect to the remarks directed to 35 USC 103, the examiner has withdrawn the rejection. The examiner found applicant’s remarks to be persuasive in addition to the updated search rendering the claims non-obvious over the closest prior art.
Applicant's arguments filed 1/08/2026 (for RCE filed 1/20/2026) with respect to 35 USC 101 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive for the reasons set forth below.
With respect to the remarks directed to Step 2A-Prong 1, the examiner maintains that the claims are directed to sale activities. As shown in the rejection above, the steps are directed to analyzing BNLP loan product information to ultimately match a BIN of the loan product to a BIN with a consumer payment card associated with a BNPL offer finder service account or consumer profile. This is a method of organizing human activity as detail in the rejection above. Recitation of the structure to accomplish this process does not preclude the claims from being directed to an abstract idea.
With respect to the remarks directed to Step 2A-Prong 2, the examiner asserts the recitation of the claims as amended still merely recite the additional elements as a tool to implement the abstract idea. Elements such as the structured key relational-table linking the product name table and product category table is also part of the abstract idea as it is merely data organized in a particular manner, the receiving and storing of search query product data and receipt storage of the BNPL offer from a merchant server is also merely an abstract idea carried out by the additional element of the merchant server, identification of location and determination of match using the set of rules laid out by the claims are part of the abstract idea and not part of the additional elements. As claimed, the additional elements are merely tangential to the implementation of the claimed invention and not integrated into a practical application.
With respect to the remarks directed to Step 2B, the examiner maintains that when considered as a whole, the abstract idea is not integrated into a practical application. Further, the examiner has not asserted in the rejection that the limitations are merely routine or conventional (under Berkheimer) and therefore the remarks directed to this assertion are moot.
For at least these reasons, the rejection under 35 USC 101 is maintained.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to VICTORIA E. FRUNZI whose telephone number is (571)270-1031. The examiner can normally be reached Monday- Friday 7-4 (EST).
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Marissa Thein can be reached at (571) 272-6764. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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VICTORIA E. FRUNZI
Primary Examiner
Art Unit TC 3689
/VICTORIA E. FRUNZI/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3689 3/5/2026