DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
This action is responsive to communication filed on 01/12/2026. Claim(s) 14 and 23 have been amended. Claim(s) 29 has been added. Claim(s) 11-29 are currently pending examination. 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.
Response to Amendment
The Applicant filed amendment(s) to claim(s) on 01/12/2026 to remedy the rejection(s).
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments, see Page(s) 9-10, filed on 01/12/2026, with respect to Claim(s) 14 have been fully considered and are persuasive. The 35 U.S.C. § 112(b) of Claim(s) 14 has been withdrawn.
Applicant’s arguments, see Page(s) 9-13, filed on 01/12/2026, with respect to Claim(s) 11-13, 15-22, 24-28 have been fully considered and are persuasive. The 35 U.S.C. § 103 of Claim(s) 11-13, 15-22, 24-28 has been withdrawn.
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.
Claim(s) 11-29 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 because the claimed invention is directed to an abstract idea without significantly more. The claim(s) recites receiving data, determining prior data, checking plausibility based on prior data and detecting suppression based on that check. In addition, Claim(s) 23 includes verification of a digital signature and sending an alarm if an error is detected. These fall into recognized abstract ideas categories such as collecting information, analyzing information and identifying a condition based on the analysis. Claim(s) 23 also presents as security monitoring, compliance checking and alert generation. These are long-standing human practices in security auditing contexts.
The limitations(s) of receiving a current transmission, determines a prior transmission, performing a plausibility check and detecting suppression based on the comparison. Further, additional claims limitations include detecting an absence based on a comparison and providing an alert. These steps amount to nothing more than a generalized data analysis workflow. The recitation of a “function” “checks a signature”, “vehicle” and a “vehicle-external server” merely uses the generic elements of the abstract idea, which is performed and does not meaningfully limit the claim.
This judicial exception is not integrated into a practical application because the claim(s) does not recites a particular server architecture, a specific suppression-detection mechanism, a technical improvement to communication protocol nor does it recite a transformation of data beyond analysis. In addition, there is no statement of improved protocol, hardware operation, database structure or network performance.
The claim does/do not include additional elements that are sufficient to amount to significantly more than the judicial exception because the functions, signature verification, alarm messaging, vehicle, vehicle-external server and system are generic computing components. These generic computing components are merely used to apply the exception, there is no inventive concept present. No elements of Claim(s) 23 reflect a non-conventional technical architecture, a specific machine configuration, hardware level innovation or new cryptographic protocols. The claims simply automates a security audit concept. The claim is not patent eligible.
ConclusionAny inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to CHRISTOPHER B ROBINSON whose telephone number is (571)270-0702. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 7:00-3:00 EST.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Nicholas R Taylor can be reached at 571-272-3889. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/CHRISTOPHER B ROBINSON/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2443
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