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 .
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Specification
The lengthy specification has not been checked to the extent necessary to determine the presence of all possible minor errors. Applicant’s cooperation is requested in correcting any errors of which applicant may become aware in the specification.
The title of the invention is not descriptive. A new title is required that is clearly indicative of the invention to which the claims are directed.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 101
5. 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.
6. Claims 1-3 and 7-9 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 because the claimed invention is directed to an abstract idea without significantly more.
Claim 1 recites a machine (management server) comprising a communication interface configured to communicate with an image forming device and a reader; a memory and a processor. The processor is configured “to update information that represents a work status of the job represented by the job information in the document management information, based on reading information of the electronic device disposed on the document by the reader.” The step of updating the information may conceivably be performed by judgment/evaluation and editing the information on a sheet of paper based on the judgment/evaluation, and thus is deemed to involve mental processes that can be performed in the human mind. Therefore, the claim recites an abstract idea (judicial exception).
This judicial exception is not integrated into a practical application. The processor that performs the updating is recited at a high level of generality (i.e., as a generic processor performing a generic computer function of modifying stored information based on received data) such that it amounts to no more than mere instructions to apply an exception using a generic computer component. Accordingly, this additional element does not integrate the abstract idea into a practical application because it does not impose any meaningful limits on practicing the abstract idea. The remaining elements of the management server, namely the communication interface and the reader, merely provide for the storage and communication of information with an external device, which amounts to no more than extra-solution activity to the judicial exception.
The claim does not include additional elements that are sufficient to amount to significantly more than the judicial exception. As mentioned above with respect to integration of the abstract idea into a practical application, using a processor to perform the updating step amounts to no more than mere instructions to apply the exception using a generic computer component. Furthermore, the communication of information between the communication interface of the server and a printer, and the storage of information in the memory of the server, do not impose any meaningful limitations that would amount to significantly more than the judicial exception, for these elements do not perform their functions in an unconventional manner, or beyond what is well-understood, routine, conventional activity. The combination of elements as recited in the claim do not provide an inventive concept. Therefore, the claim is not patent eligible.
Claims 2 and 3 merely define the information that is stored and communicated with the external device. The claims do recite any additional element that integrates the judicial exception into a practical application, or amount to significantly more than the judicial exception. Therefore, these claims are not patent eligible.
Claims 7-9, directed to a method of operating a management server, similarly recite the limitations of claims 1-3, directed to the management server. These claims are not patent eligible, for the reasons set forth above.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
7. 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.
8. The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
9. Claims 1, 6, 7 and 12 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Japanese Application Publication JP 2007-306332 A (hereinafter “Iwasaki”).
Regarding claim 1, Iwasaki discloses a management server (job management server 6 (paragraph [0055])) comprising:
- a communication interface (network 4 (paragraph [0055])) configured to communicate with
- an image forming device (first and second multifunction devices 3 and 5 (paragraph [0024])) comprising (i) a printer configured to print an image on a medium (printing unit 20 performs printing with a visible image on a paper having a specified size and quality (paragraph [0028])) and (ii) a reader-writer configured to write data to an electronic device disposed on the medium (RFID reader for writing/reading data to/from the document 9 with an RFID tag (paragraph [0029])), and
- a reader configured to read the data from the electronic device (scanner 13 for optically reading the surface of a normal document from the document tray 11 and a document 9 with an RFID tag on the document tray 11 (paragraph [0029]));
- a memory configured to store document management information including job information that represents a job executed using a document whose data is written by the reader-writer to the electronic device disposed on the medium on which the image is printed by the printer in the image forming device (job management unit 60 accumulates and manages job reception date/time, machine ID, job ID, user name, and status together with document ID for identifying document 9 with RFID tag (paragraph [0056])); and
- a processor configured to update information that represents a work status of the job represented by the job information in the document management information, based on reading information of the electronic device disposed on the document by the reader (job history of the RFID tag 91 is updated using the acquired job history (paragraph [0060])).
Regarding claim 6, Iwasaki discloses an image forming device (first and second multifunction devices 3 and 5 (paragraph [0024])) comprising:
- a printer configured to print an image on a medium (printing unit 20 performs printing with a visible image on a paper having a specified size and quality (paragraph [0028]));
- a reader-writer configured to write data to an electronic device provided on the medium (RFID reader for writing/reading data to/from the document 9 with an RFID tag (paragraph [0029]));
- a memory configured to store document management information including job information about a job executed using a document whose data is written by the reader-writer to the electronic device disposed on the medium on which the image is printed by the printer (job history (a list of job management information) stored in the job management unit 46 of the multifunction machine 3 (paragraph [0037]); CPU 41 writes job management information by the RFID reader/writer in the job management unit (paragraph [0043]));
- a communication interface configured to:
- communicate with a reader that corresponds to the job represented by the job information in the document management information and read the electronic device disposed on the document (CPU reads the surface of the RFID-tagged document and accumulates the document image data in HDD 45, then reads the document image data from the HDD to print the document image data on a designated number of sheets of paper (paragraph [0042])); and
- a processor configured to update information that represents a work status of the job represented by the job information in the document management information, based on reading information of the electronic device provided on the document by the reader (CPU updates the job status in the job management information stored in the job management unit according to the progress of the job (paragraph [0042])).
Regarding claim 7, Iwasaki discloses a method of operating a management server (job management server 6 (paragraph [0055])) comprising a communication interface (network 4 (paragraph [0055])) configured to communicate with an image forming device (first and second multifunction devices 3 and 5 (paragraph [0024])) comprising (i) a printer configured to print an image on a medium (printing unit 20 performs printing with a visible image on a paper having a specified size and quality (paragraph [0028])) and (ii) a reader-writer configured to write data to an electronic device disposed on the medium (RFID reader for writing/reading data to/from the document 9 with an RFID tag (paragraph [0029])), and a reader configured to read the data from the electronic device (scanner 13 for optically reading the surface of a normal document from the document tray 11 and a document 9 with an RFID tag on the document tray 11 (paragraph [0029])), the method comprising:
- storing document management information including job information that represents a job executed using a document whose data is written by the reader-writer to the electronic device disposed on the medium on which the image is printed by the printer in the image forming device (job management unit 60 accumulates and manages job reception date/time, machine ID, job ID, user name, and status together with document ID for identifying document 9 with RFID tag (paragraph [0056])); and
- updating information that represents a work status of the job represented by the job information in the document management information, based on reading information of the electronic device disposed on the document by the reader (job history of the RFID tag 91 is updated using the acquired job history (paragraph [0060])).
Regarding claim 12, Iwasaki discloses a method of operating an image forming device (first and second multifunction devices 3 and 5 (paragraph [0024])) comprising a printer configured to print an image on a medium (printing unit 20 performs printing with a visible image on a paper having a specified size and quality (paragraph [0028])); and a reader-writer configured to write data to an electronic device provided on the medium (RFID reader for writing/reading data to/from the document 9 with an RFID tag (paragraph [0029])), the method comprising:
- storing document management information including job information about a job executed using a document whose data is written by the reader-writer to the electronic device disposed on the medium on which the image is printed by the printer (job history (a list of job management information) stored in the job management unit 46 of the multifunction machine 3 (paragraph [0037]); CPU 41 writes job management information by the RFID reader/writer in the job management unit (paragraph [0043]));
- communicating with a reader that corresponds to the job represented by the job information in the document management information and reading the electronic device disposed on the document (CPU reads the surface of the RFID-tagged document and accumulates the document image data in HDD 45, then reads the document image data from the HDD to print the document image data on a designated number of sheets of paper (paragraph [0042])); and
- updating information that represents a work status of the job represented by the job information in the document management information, based on reading information of the electronic device provided on the document by the reader (CPU updates the job status in the job management information stored in the job management unit according to the progress of the job (paragraph [0042])).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
10. 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.
11. Claims 2-5 and 8-11 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Iwasaki as applied to claim 1 above, and in view of Japanese Application Publication JP 2015-148967 A (hereinafter “Kurokawa”).
Regarding claims 2 and 8, Iwasaki does not expressly disclose wherein the processor records a date and time of generation when the image forming devices generates the document, in the document management information.
Kurokawa discloses a management device including a management device including a reception unit that receives, from an image forming apparatus having detected RFID tags provided on prints to be managed and storing tag IDs capable of identifying the tags, the tag IDs, time and date of printing, and period of storage of the prints; a first management unit that stores and manages, in a storage limitation management information storage unit, storage limitation management information in which the tag IDs are associated with the storage limitation based on the time and date of printing and a period of storage of the prints (Abstract). From the Abstract, it is apparent that Kurokawa discloses recording a date and time of generation when the image forming devices generates the document, in the document management information. Providing the time and date of printing of documents enables the system to track the ongoing status of such documents with greater precision, thereby enhancing the security of the documents. Therefore, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art, at the time of Applicant’s invention, to have modified the teaching of Iwasaki by providing recording the time and date of the printing of the documents in a management information storage unit, such as taught by Kurokawa.
Regarding claims 3 and 9, Kurokawa further discloses wherein the processor records a date and time of reading when the reader corresponding to the job represented by the job information in the document management information reads the electronic device of the document (control unit 340 transmits, to management device 40, the tag ID acquired by the detection unit 330, the device ID stored in the storage unit 320, and the detection date and time when the RFID tag is detected by the detection unit 330 (paragraph [0040]); detection of an RFID tag can be realized by a reader or the like that reads information from the from the RFID tag by near field communication (paragraph [0039])).
Regarding claims 4 and 10, Kurokawa further discloses wherein the communication interface is further configured to communicate with a terminal that is a predetermined destination of notification (management system 1 includes an administrator terminal 50 connected to information processing device 10, image forming device 20, detection devices 30-1 to 30-N, and management device 40 via network 2 (paragraphs [0009]-[0010])), and
- the processor is configured to notify the predetermined destination of notification, of the work status of the job represented by the job information in the document management information (administrator terminal is notified of information of printed matter whose storage time limit has passed, as well as information of all the printed matter to be managed together with the presence or absence of the storage time limit (paragraph [0063])).
Regarding claims 5 and 11, Kurokawa further discloses wherein the communication interface is further configured to communicate with a terminal that is a predetermined destination of notification (management system 1 includes an administrator terminal 50 connected to information processing device 10, image forming device 20, detection devices 30-1 to 30-N, and management device 40 via network 2 (paragraphs [0009]-[0010])), and
- when a due date is passed without completion of all jobs represented by the job information in the document management information, the processor notifies the predetermined destination of notification that the due date of the document is passed (administrator terminal is notified of information of printed matter whose storage time limit has passed, as well as information of all the printed matter to be managed together with the presence or absence of the storage time limit (paragraph [0063])).
12. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to THOMAS D LEE whose telephone number is (571)272-7436. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri 7:30AM-5:00PM.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Abderrahim Merouan can be reached at 571-270-5254. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/THOMAS D LEE/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2683