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 .
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 allowance or after an Office action under Ex Parte Quayle, 25 USPQ 74, 453 O.G. 213 (Comm'r Pat. 1935). 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, prosecution in this application has been reopened pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 11/10/2025 has been entered.
Status of the claims
Claims 1, 4-11, 14-21 are currently pending for examination.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 11/10/2025 is being considered by the examiner.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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.
Claims 1, 4-11, 14-21 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Patil et al. (US 20200262695, hereafter Patil) in view of Pallas et al. (US 20150242969, hereafter Pallas).
Regarding claim 1, Patil discloses: A method comprising:
receiving sensor data including an identity-less parameter comprising a wireless emission signature characterizing unique identifier of a first computing device of a user of a fuel dispenser configured in a fuel dispensing environment (Patil [0031] discloses: the first sensor 135 is configured to scan the identifying characteristics of the vehicle 110 by receiving vehicle-identifying signals (e.g., vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) signals, vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2X) signals, or the like) from one or more transmitter devices 170 integrally incorporated into or simply present in the vehicle 110, and configured to transmit, when scanned by the first sensor 135, wireless signals uniquely identifying the vehicle 110 in a system of refueling);
transmitting, by a fueling station controller operably coupled to the fuel dispenser, a query comprising the identify-less parameter to a profile database comprising at least one database record characterizing the fuel dispenser user (Patil [0027] discloses: the emitter 136 may be configured to transmit the vehicle identification data scanned by the first sensor 135 from the vehicle 110 to the retailer computing device 150 to facilitate the retailer computing device 150 to query the electronic database 160 and determine whether the scanned vehicle identification data scanned by the first sensor 135 matches the vehicle identification data stored in the electronic database 160 in association with customers of the retailer authorized to refuel at the vehicle refueling station 120; [0020] discloses: the customer information database 160 as a profile database );
determining an association between the fuel dispenser user and the wireless emission signature of the first computing device based on the query, the association indicative of the at least one database record including the identity-less parameter (Patil [0034; 0045] discloses: to detect a wireless signal (including an identifier unique to a retailer-associated mobile application (app) installed on the personal electronic device 180) from the personal electronic device 180 of the operator of the vehicle 110; [0018] discloses: the retailer computing device 150 generates a reward credit for the operator of the vehicle 110 for the money spent by the operator during refueling of the vehicle 110 and transmits a signal to the electronic database 160 over the network 115 to store the generated reward credit in the electronic database 160 in association with the data associated with the operator of the vehicle 110);
providing the at least one targeted communication (Patil [0037] discloses: advertisements that may be displayed to the customer while the vehicle refueling device 130 is refueling the vehicle 110. In some embodiments, the vehicle refueling device 130 may be configured such that the advertisements are personalized using the customer's specific information to increase the interest of the customer).
Patil didn’t disclose, but Pallas discloses: determining at least one targeted communication based on the determined association, the at least one targeted communication comprising promotional material customized for the fuel dispenser user and associated with good and/or services available from the fuel dispensing environment (Pallas [0272; 0273] discloses: Following identification of the identified customer at step 1702 and at any time during or after dispensation of fuel by the identified fuel dispenser 18, the process 1700 may illustratively be modified to include one or more steps by which the processor 20 of the main server 12 may determine whether to offer one or more virtual discount coupons for one or more goods and/or services to the identified customer, if so, what goods and/or services to offer, and to provide such one or more offers to the identified customer);
Patil and Pallas are analogous art because they are in the same field of endeavor, payment processing for the purchase of fuel by the customer with any of the plurality of fuel dispensers. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to modify Patil, to include the teaching of Pallas, in order to notify of the at least one discount coupon to the mobile communication device. The suggestion to combine is for generating and retrieving from the first or the second database by the first processor at least one discount coupon for a product or service from the retail enterprise based on the purchase history of the identified one of the plurality of customer members of the enterprise membership service program, and wirelessly transmitting with the first processor to the mobile communication device associated with the first code in the first or the second database the at least one discount coupon or notification of the at least one discount coupon.
Regarding claim 4, Patil as modified discloses: The method of claim 3, wherein the wireless emissions signature characterizes a proximity of the user of the fuel dispenser to a sensor within the fuel dispensing environment, the sensor configured to receive the sensor data (Patil [0034] discloses: the second sensor 137 is configured to scan the identifying characteristics of the operator of the vehicle 110 when the vehicle 110 is located within a predetermined threshold distance from the refueling device 130. The predetermined distance may be from about 1 foot to about 50 feet, for example, 2 feet, 3 feet, 4 feet, 5 feet, 6 feet, 10 feet, 15 feet, 20 feet, etc. In certain aspects, the second sensor 137 is configured to detect a wireless signal (including an identifier unique to a retailer-associated mobile application (app) installed on the personal electronic device 180) from the personal electronic device 180 of the operator of the vehicle 110 in order to facilitate an identification of the operator of the vehicle 110 ).
Regarding claim 5, Patil as modified discloses: The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one targeted communication is provided for display on at least one of a display of the first computing device, a display of the fuel dispenser, or a digital sign configured within the fuel dispensing environment (Patil [0043] discloses: The inputs 270 of the retailer computing device 150 may be configured to permit an operator to navigate through the on-screen menus on the retailer computing device 150 and make changes and/or updates to various aspects of the account of the customer (e.g., update the reward points in response to an amount spent for gasoline fill up). It will be appreciated that the display screen 260 may be configured as both a display screen and an input 270 (e.g., a touch-screen that permits an operator to press on the display screen 260 to enter text and/or execute commands).
Regarding claim 6, Patil as modified discloses: The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one targeted communication comprises at least one of an advertisement, an incentive, or a discount for the goods and/or services available from the fuel dispensing environment (Patil [00370043; ] discloses: advertisements that may be displayed to the customer while the vehicle refueling device 130 is refueling the vehicle 110. In some embodiments, the vehicle refueling device 130 may be configured such that the advertisements are personalized using the customer's specific information to increase the interest of the customer).
Regarding claim 7, Patil as modified discloses: The method of claim 2, wherein the database record comprises wireless emission signatures of a plurality of second computing devices of the user of the fuel dispenser (Patil [0020] discloses: the customer information database 160 may store electronic information including but not limited to: personal information of each customer of the retailer signed up for the gas refueling services provided by the retailer, for example, vehicle identification data (e.g., license plate, make and model, color, year, V2X identifier, RFID transponder/digital card or key, Wi-Fi hotspot, of one or more vehicles 110 owned by the customer or a user, etc.).
Regarding claim 8, Patil as modified discloses: The method of claim 2, wherein responsive to determining the association between the fuel dispenser user and the wireless emission signature of the first computer device , the method further comprises: editing the at least one database record to include at least one of demographic data and electronic payment information corresponding to the user of the fuel dispenser (Patil [0047] discloses: the control circuit 210 is programmed to transmit an electronic notification to the electronic database 160 instructing the electronic database 160 to update (i.e., increase) the number of reward points associated in the electronic database 160 with the account of the customer by an amount appropriate (e.g., one point per one dollar, two points per one dollar, three points per one dollar, etc.) for the amount of money spent by the customer on filling up his/her vehicle at the refueling station 120).
Regarding claim 9, Patil as modified discloses: The method of claim 8, wherein the demographic information includes a height, a weight, a gender, or a demeanor of the fuel dispenser user (Patil [0022; 0060] discloses: generate a profile including personal information of the customer (e.g., name, address, phone number, and the like), identifying characteristics of the customer ).
Regarding claim 10, Patil as modified discloses: The method of claim 8, wherein the electronic payment information includes fuel purchase data associated with fuel purchases conducted by the fuel dispenser user, purchase data associated with purchases of goods and/or services conducted by the fuel dispenser user, or browsing history data associated with a duration of the fuel dispenser user in proximity of the goods and/or services available from within the fuel dispensing environment (Patil [0047] discloses: the control circuit 210 of the retailer computing device 150 is programmed to assign reward points to the account of the customer after the customer has filled up his/her vehicle 110 at the vehicle refueling station 120. For example, in one aspect, after the sale of gasoline to the customer is complete, the control circuit 210 is programmed to transmit an electronic notification to the electronic database 160 instructing the electronic database 160 to update (i.e., increase) the number of reward points associated in the electronic database 160 with the account of the customer by an amount appropriate (e.g., one point per one dollar, two points per one dollar, three points per one dollar, etc.) for the amount of money spent by the customer on filling up his/her vehicle at the refueling station 120).
Regarding claim 11, Patil as modified discloses: A system comprising:
at least one data processor (Patil [0024]); and
memory storing instructions configured to cause the at least one data processor to perform operations comprising (Patil [0040]):
receiving sensor data including an identity-less parameter comprising a wireless emission signature characterizing a unique identifier of a first computing device of a user of a fuel dispenser configured in a fuel dispensing environment (Patil [0031] discloses: the first sensor 135 is configured to scan the identifying characteristics of the vehicle 110 by receiving vehicle-identifying signals (e.g., vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) signals, vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2X) signals, or the like) from one or more transmitter devices 170 integrally incorporated into or simply present in the vehicle 110, and configured to transmit, when scanned by the first sensor 135, wireless signals uniquely identifying the vehicle 110 in a system of refueling);
transmitting, by a fueling station controller operably coupled to the fuel dispenser, a query comprising the identify-less parameter to a profile database comprising at least one database record characterizing the fuel dispenser user(Patil [0027] discloses: the emitter 136 may be configured to transmit the vehicle identification data scanned by the first sensor 135 from the vehicle 110 to the retailer computing device 150 to facilitate the retailer computing device 150 to query the electronic database 160 and determine whether the scanned vehicle identification data scanned by the first sensor 135 matches the vehicle identification data stored in the electronic database 160 in association with customers of the retailer authorized to refuel at the vehicle refueling station 120; [0020] discloses: the customer information database 160 as a profile database );
determining an association between the fuel dispenser user and the wireless emission signature of the first computing device based on the query, the association indicative of the at least one database record including the identity-less parameter (Patil [0034; 0045] discloses: to detect a wireless signal (including an identifier unique to a retailer-associated mobile application (app) installed on the personal electronic device 180) from the personal electronic device 180 of the operator of the vehicle 110; [0018] discloses: the retailer computing device 150 generates a reward credit for the operator of the vehicle 110 for the money spent by the operator during refueling of the vehicle 110 and transmits a signal to the electronic database 160 over the network 115 to store the generated reward credit in the electronic database 160 in association with the data associated with the operator of the vehicle 110);
providing the at least one targeted communication (Patil [0037] discloses: advertisements that may be displayed to the customer while the vehicle refueling device 130 is refueling the vehicle 110. In some embodiments, the vehicle refueling device 130 may be configured such that the advertisements are personalized using the customer's specific information to increase the interest of the customer).
Patil didn’t disclose, but Pallas discloses: determining at least one targeted communication based on the determined association, the at least one targeted communication comprising promotional material customized for the fuel dispenser user and associated with good and/or services available from the fuel dispensing environment (Pallas [0272; 0273] discloses: Following identification of the identified customer at step 1702 and at any time during or after dispensation of fuel by the identified fuel dispenser 18, the process 1700 may illustratively be modified to include one or more steps by which the processor 20 of the main server 12 may determine whether to offer one or more virtual discount coupons for one or more goods and/or services to the identified customer, if so, what goods and/or services to offer, and to provide such one or more offers to the identified customer).
Patil and Pallas are analogous art because they are in the same field of endeavor, payment processing for the purchase of fuel by the customer with any of the plurality of fuel dispensers. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to modify Patil, to include the teaching of Pallas, in order to notify of the at least one discount coupon to the mobile communication device. The suggestion to combine is for generating and retrieving from the first or the second database by the first processor at least one discount coupon for a product or service from the retail enterprise based on the purchase history of the identified one of the plurality of customer members of the enterprise membership service program, and wirelessly transmitting with the first processor to the mobile communication device associated with the first code in the first or the second database the at least one discount coupon or notification of the at least one discount coupon.
Regarding claim 14, Patil as modified discloses: The system of claim 11, wherein the wireless emissions signature characterizes a proximity of the user of the fuel dispenser to a sensor within the fuel dispensing environment, the sensor configured to receive the sensor data (Patil [0034] discloses: the second sensor 137 is configured to scan the identifying characteristics of the operator of the vehicle 110 when the vehicle 110 is located within a predetermined threshold distance from the refueling device 130. The predetermined distance may be from about 1 foot to about 50 feet, for example, 2 feet, 3 feet, 4 feet, 5 feet, 6 feet, 10 feet, 15 feet, 20 feet, etc. In certain aspects, the second sensor 137 is configured to detect a wireless signal (including an identifier unique to a retailer-associated mobile application (app) installed on the personal electronic device 180) from the personal electronic device 180 of the operator of the vehicle 110 in order to facilitate an identification of the operator of the vehicle 110 ).
Regarding claim 15, Patil as modified discloses:. The system of claim 11, wherein the at least one targeted communication is provided for display on at least one of a display of the first computing device, a display of the fuel dispenser, or a digital sign configured within the fuel dispensing environment (Patil [0043] discloses: The inputs 270 of the retailer computing device 150 may be configured to permit an operator to navigate through the on-screen menus on the retailer computing device 150 and make changes and/or updates to various aspects of the account of the customer (e.g., update the reward points in response to an amount spent for gasoline fill up). It will be appreciated that the display screen 260 may be configured as both a display screen and an input 270 (e.g., a touch-screen that permits an operator to press on the display screen 260 to enter text and/or execute commands).
Regarding claim 16, Patil as modified discloses: The system of claim 11, wherein the at least one targeted communication comprises at least one of an advertisement, an incentive, or a discount for the goods and/or services available from the fuel dispensing environment (Patil [00370043; ] discloses: advertisements that may be displayed to the customer while the vehicle refueling device 130 is refueling the vehicle 110. In some embodiments, the vehicle refueling device 130 may be configured such that the advertisements are personalized using the customer's specific information to increase the interest of the customer).
Regarding claim 17, Patil as modified discloses: The system of claim 11, wherein the database record comprises wireless emission signatures of a plurality of second computing devices of the user of the fuel dispenser (Patil [0020] discloses: the customer information database 160 may store electronic information including but not limited to: personal information of each customer of the retailer signed up for the gas refueling services provided by the retailer, for example, vehicle identification data (e.g., license plate, make and model, color, year, V2X identifier, RFID transponder/digital card or key, Wi-Fi hotspot, of one or more vehicles 110 owned by the customer or a user, etc.).
Regarding claim 18, Patil as modified discloses: The system of claim 11, wherein responsive to determining the association between the fuel dispenser user and the wireless emission signature of the first computing device, the at least one data processor is further configured to:
edit the at least one database record to include at least one of demographic data corresponding to the user of the fuel dispenser, electronic payment information(Patil [0047] discloses: the control circuit 210 is programmed to transmit an electronic notification to the electronic database 160 instructing the electronic database 160 to update (i.e., increase) the number of reward points associated in the electronic database 160 with the account of the customer by an amount appropriate (e.g., one point per one dollar, two points per one dollar, three points per one dollar, etc.) for the amount of money spent by the customer on filling up his/her vehicle at the refueling station 120).
Regarding claim 19, Patil as modified discloses: The system of claim 18, wherein the demographic information includes a height, a weight, a gender, or a demeanor of the fuel dispenser user (Patil [0022; 0060] discloses: generate a profile including personal information of the customer (e.g., name, address, phone number, and the like), identifying characteristics of the customer ).
Regarding claim 20, Patil as modified discloses: The system of claim 18, wherein the demographic information includes fuel purchase data associated with fuel purchases conducted by the fuel dispenser user, purchase data associated with purchases of goods and/or services conducted by the fuel dispenser user, or browsing history data associated with a duration of the fuel dispenser user in proximity of the goods and/or services available from within the fuel dispensing environment (Patil [0047] discloses: the control circuit 210 of the retailer computing device 150 is programmed to assign reward points to the account of the customer after the customer has filled up his/her vehicle 110 at the vehicle refueling station 120. For example, in one aspect, after the sale of gasoline to the customer is complete, the control circuit 210 is programmed to transmit an electronic notification to the electronic database 160 instructing the electronic database 160 to update (i.e., increase) the number of reward points associated in the electronic database 160 with the account of the customer by an amount appropriate (e.g., one point per one dollar, two points per one dollar, three points per one dollar, etc.) for the amount of money spent by the customer on filling up his/her vehicle at the refueling station 120).
Regarding claim 21, Patil as modified discloses: the method of claim 8, wherein the at last one database record, when edited excludes personally identifiable information supplied by the user of the fuel dispenser (Patil [0047] discloses: the control circuit 210 is programmed to transmit an electronic notification to the electronic database 160 instructing the electronic database 160 to update (i.e., increase) the number of reward points associated in the electronic database 160 with the account of the customer by an amount appropriate (e.g., one point per one dollar, two points per one dollar, three points per one dollar, etc.) for the amount of money spent by the customer on filling up his/her vehicle at the refueling station 120).
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/CINDY NGUYEN/Examiner, Art Unit 2156