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
This application is a 371 of PCT/JP2021/041789 with a filing date of 12 November 2021. Therefore, the effective filing date of the claims is 12 November 2021.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 16 January 2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
In response to applicant’s arguments that Levitov does not clearly teach to “perform processing comprising controlling opening/closing of a gate through which the target person enters a target area, in a case where generating authenticated information indicating that authentication of the target person is successful”, as stated on page 8, the examiner respectfully disagrees.
Levitov discloses the servicer goes to the first currency-handling machine along the service route (Fig. 5, el. 520; Para. 31), and upon identifying a match, the DAD 120 sends a signal to cause the electronic lock mechanism 140 to unlock the door or panel 135 (Fig. 1, el. 135, 140; Para. 18). Furthermore, in block 560, the sensed biometric characteristic is compared with the biometric reference template, and if they match, as illustrated by decision block 570, then in block 580 the servicer is granted access to the currency repository 130 (Fig. 5, el. 570, 580; Para. 32).
Applicant’s arguments appear to be that the “gate” and “target area” of the independent claims would not be disclosed by the “door” and “currency repository”, respectively, of Levitov. However, Levitov discloses that the servicer is granted access to the currency repository upon authentication via the electronic lock mechanism and the door. In this way, at least a portion of the servicer, e.g., a hand, is able to “enter” or “pass through” the door to reach the repository.
Therefore, the aforementioned limitation is taught by the cited prior art.
Also note Gopalakrishnan et al. (US 2021/0014070 A1), cited for claim 2 in the 35 U.S.C. 103 rejection below, that discloses the computing device could be a physical security access control device which allows for control of an actuator controlling a physical barrier such as a door lock or turnstile (Para. 26).
Claim Objections
Claims 6, 8, and 12 are objected to because of the following informalities:
Regarding claim 6, line 10—“the part”, lacks sufficient antecedent basis for the claim. In order to overcome this objection, line 10 may be amended to state --a part--, for example.
Regarding claim 8, line 6—“the part”, lacks sufficient antecedent basis for the claim. In order to overcome this objection, line 6 may be amended to state --a part--, for example.
Regarding claim 12, lines 8-9—“performing processing…generating authenticated information”, the limitation appears to be missing some words before “generating”. In order to overcome this objection, lines 8-9 may be amended to state --performing processing comprising controlling opening/closing of a gate through which the target person enters a target area, in a case where generating authenticated information indicating that authentication of the target person is successful--, for example to match the language of claim 1.
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 1, 10, and 12 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1)/(a)(2) as being anticipated by Levitov (US 2008/0087720 A1).
Regarding claim 1, Levitov teaches an authentication apparatus, e.g., digital authentication device (DAD) 120/DAD 200 (Fig. 1, el. 120; Fig. 2, el. 200), comprising:
at least one memory, e.g., memory 260 (Fig. 2, el. 260), configured to store instructions; and
at least one processor, e.g., processor 250 (Fig. 2, el. 250), configured to execute the instructions to:
acquire, from a mobile terminal, e.g., mobile biometric data collection device 190/mobile biometric data collection device 300/mobile biometric data collection device 400 (Fig. 1, el. 190; Fig. 3, el. 300; Fig. 4, el. 400), master biological information of a target person and biological information for authentication, the biological information for authentication being biological information of the target person generated by the mobile terminal, e.g., in block 550, the mobile biometric data collection device 400 transfers encrypted forms of the sensed biometric characteristic and the biometric reference template 450 to the DAD 120 for matching by the DAD 120 (Fig. 4, el. 450; Fig. 5, el. 550; Para. 32); in block 540, the mobile biometric data collection device 400 senses a biometric characteristic, such as a fingerprint or facial profile, from the servicer (Fig. 5, el. 540; Para. 32); the mobile biometric data collection device 400 has a memory module 455 storing a biometric reference template 450 of a currency-handling machine servicer and a biometric sensor 480 adapted to sense a biometric characteristic of the servicer for subsequent comparison with the biometric reference template 450 (Para. 31); and
perform authentication processing of the target person by using the biological information for authentication and the master biological information, e.g., in block 560, the sensed biometric characteristic is compared with the biometric reference template, and if they match, as illustrated by decision block 570, then in block 580 the servicer is granted access to the currency repository 130 (Fig. 5, el. 560; Para. 32); and
perform processing comprising controlling opening/closing of a gate, e.g., a door or panel 135 (Fig. 1, el. 135), through which the target person enters a target area, e.g., currency repository or cassette 130 (Fig. 1, el. 130), in a case where generating authenticated information indicating that authentication of the target person is successful, e.g., in block 520, the servicer goes to the first currency-handling machine along the service route (Fig. 5, el. 520; Para. 31);
upon identifying a match, the DAD 120 sends a signal to cause the electronic lock mechanism 140 to unlock the door or panel 135 (Fig. 1, el. 135, 140; Para. 18);
in block 560, the sensed biometric characteristic is compared with the biometric reference template, and if they match, as illustrated by decision block 570, then in block 580 the servicer is granted access to the currency repository 130 (Fig. 5, el. 570, 580; Para. 32);
the mobile biometric data collection device 400 also preferably logs information about the access attempt--including any information that the servicer was prompted to enter--and time and location information about the attempted or actual access (Para. 33).
Regarding claim 10, Levitov teaches a mobile terminal, e.g., mobile biometric data collection device 190/mobile biometric data collection device 300/mobile biometric data collection device 400 (Fig. 1, el. 190; Fig. 3, el. 300; Fig. 4, el. 400), comprising:
at least one memory, e.g., memory 455 (Fig. 4, el. 455), configured to store instructions; and
at least one processor, e.g., processor 415 (Fig. 4, el. 415), configured to execute the instructions to:
store master biological information of a target person, e.g., the mobile biometric data collection device 400 has a memory module 455 storing a biometric reference template 450 of a currency-handling machine servicer and a biometric sensor 480 adapted to sense a biometric characteristic of the servicer for subsequent comparison with the biometric reference template 450 (Fig. 4, el. 450; Para. 31);
acquire biological information for authentication being biological information of the target person when the target person approaches a gate, e.g., a door or panel 135 (Fig. 1, el. 135), through which the target person enters a target area, e.g., currency repository or cassette 130 (Fig. 1, el. 130);
in block 520, the servicer goes to the first currency-handling machine along the service route (Fig. 5, el. 520; Para. 31);
in block 540, the mobile biometric data collection device 400 senses a biometric characteristic, such as a fingerprint or facial profile, from the servicer (Fig. 5, el. 540; Para. 32);
a door or panel 135 that, when opened or removed, provides access to the currency repository or cassette 130 (Para. 17); and
transmit the master biological information, the biological information for authentication to an authentication apparatus that performs authentication processing of the biological information for authentication, e.g., in block 550, the mobile biometric data collection device 400 transfers encrypted forms of the sensed biometric characteristic and the biometric reference template 450 to the DAD 120 for matching by the DAD 120 (Fig. 4, el. 450; Fig. 5, el. 550; Para. 32); in block 560, the sensed biometric characteristic is compared with the biometric reference template, and if they match, as illustrated by decision block 570, then in block 580 the servicer is granted access to the currency repository 130 (Fig. 5, el. 560; Para. 32),
wherein the target person is allowed to pass through the gate in a case where authentication performed by the authentication apparatus is successful, e.g., upon identifying a match, the DAD 120 sends a signal to cause the electronic lock mechanism 140 to unlock the door or panel 135 (Fig. 1, el. 135, 140; Para. 18);
in block 560, the sensed biometric characteristic is compared with the biometric reference template, and if they match, as illustrated by decision block 570, then in block 580 the servicer is granted access to the currency repository 130 (Fig. 5, el. 570, 580; Para. 32);
the mobile biometric data collection device 400 also preferably logs information about the access attempt--including any information that the servicer was prompted to enter--and time and location information about the attempted or actual access (Para. 33).
Regarding claim 12, Levitov teaches an authentication method executed by a computer, e.g., digital authentication device (DAD) 120/DAD 200 (Fig. 1, el. 120; Fig. 2, el. 200), the method comprising:
acquiring, from a mobile terminal, e.g., mobile biometric data collection device 190/mobile biometric data collection device 300/mobile biometric data collection device 400 (Fig. 1, el. 190; Fig. 3, el. 300; Fig. 4, el. 400), master biological information of a target person, and biological information for authentication being biological information of the target person generated by the mobile terminal, e.g., in block 550, the mobile biometric data collection device 400 transfers encrypted forms of the sensed biometric characteristic and the biometric reference template 450 to the DAD 120 for matching by the DAD 120 (Fig. 4, el. 450; Fig. 5, el. 550; Para. 32); in block 540, the mobile biometric data collection device 400 senses a biometric characteristic, such as a fingerprint or facial profile, from the servicer (Fig. 5, el. 540; Para. 32); the mobile biometric data collection device 400 has a memory module 455 storing a biometric reference template 450 of a currency-handling machine servicer and a biometric sensor 480 adapted to sense a biometric characteristic of the servicer for subsequent comparison with the biometric reference template 450 (Para. 31);
performing authentication processing of the target person by using the biological information for authentication and the master biological information, e.g., in block 560, the sensed biometric characteristic is compared with the biometric reference template, and if they match, as illustrated by decision block 570, then in block 580 the servicer is granted access to the currency repository 130 (Fig. 5, el. 560; Para. 32); and
performing processing comprising controlling opening/closing of a gate, e.g., a door or panel 135 (Fig. 1, el. 135), through which the target person enters a target area, e.g., currency repository or cassette 130 (Fig. 1, el. 130), generating authenticated information indicating that authentication of the target person is successful, e.g., in block 520, the servicer goes to the first currency-handling machine along the service route (Fig. 5, el. 520; Para. 31);
upon identifying a match, the DAD 120 sends a signal to cause the electronic lock mechanism 140 to unlock the door or panel 135 (Fig. 1, el. 135, 140; Para. 18);
in block 560, the sensed biometric characteristic is compared with the biometric reference template, and if they match, as illustrated by decision block 570, then in block 580 the servicer is granted access to the currency repository 130 (Fig. 5, el. 570, 580; Para. 32);
the mobile biometric data collection device 400 also preferably logs information about the access attempt--including any information that the servicer was prompted to enter--and time and location information about the attempted or actual access (Para. 33).
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.
Claim 2 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Levitov in view of Gopalakrishnan et al. (US 2021/0014070 A1).
Regarding claim 2, Levitov teaches the authentication apparatus according to claim 1.
Levitov does not clearly teach wherein the at least one processor is further configured to execute the instructions to:
acquire, from the mobile terminal, certificate information for certifying the mobile terminal, the certificate information certifying that the mobile terminal is a terminal to be utilized together with the authentication apparatus, and
perform the authentication processing in a case where the certificate information is acquired, and determine that authentication of the target person has failed without performing authentication processing in a case where the certificate information is not acquired.
Gopalakrishnan teaches wherein the at least one processor, e.g., a computing device in the form of a terminal 201 (Fig. 3, el. 201; Para. 31), wherein the computing device could be a physical security access control device which allows for control of an actuator controlling a physical barrier such as a door lock or turnstile (Para. 26), is further configured to execute the instructions to:
acquire, from the mobile terminal, e.g., a biometric verification device 300 (Fig. 3, el. 300), certificate information for certifying the mobile terminal, the certificate information certifying that the mobile terminal is a terminal to be utilized together with the authentication apparatus, e.g., the process of pairing the two devices begins with step 312 in which computing device 201 sends a certificate request to the biometric verification device 300 (Fig. 3, el. 312; Para. 41);
step 313 can also involve the external device transmitting the signed certificate back to the computing device 201 (Fig. 3, el. 313; Para. 42);
authorizing access to the computing device 201 can be predicated on both the verification of the certificate in step 314 and the provisioning of valid biometric information during the operational phase, and FIG. 3 therefore includes a step 315 of predicating access based on the verification of the certificate in step 314, wherein if the certificate is verified, step 315 results in the system switching from setup mode 310 to operational mode 320 (Fig. 3, el. 314, 315; Para. 44), and
perform the authentication processing in a case where the certificate information is acquired, and determine that authentication of the target person has failed without performing authentication processing in a case where the certificate information is not acquired, e.g., the process continues with step 314 in which the signed certificate is verified by the computing device 201 (Fig. 3, el. 314; Para. 43);
authorizing access to the computing device 201 can be predicated on both the verification of the certificate in step 314 and the provisioning of valid biometric information during the operational phase, and FIG. 3 therefore includes a step 315 of predicating access based on the verification of the certificate in step 314, wherein if the certificate is verified, step 315 results in the system switching from setup mode 310 to operational mode 320 (Fig. 3, el. 314, 315; Para. 44);
step 321 can be predicated by a request for identity verification sent from computing device 201 (Fig. 3, el. 321; Para. 45).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Levitov to include wherein the at least one processor is further configured to execute the instructions to: acquire, from the mobile terminal, certificate information for certifying the mobile terminal, the certificate information certifying that the mobile terminal is a terminal to be utilized together with the authentication apparatus, and perform the authentication processing in a case where the certificate information is acquired, and determine that authentication of the target person has failed without performing authentication processing in a case where the certificate information is not acquired, using the known method of requesting and receiving, by the computing device, a certificate from the external biometric verification device, and predicating the biometric verification process on the verification of the certificate, as taught by Gopalakrishnan, in combination with the biometric access control system of Levitov, for the purpose of providing an additional layer of security by also validating the mobile terminal.
Examiner note: The “determine that authentication of the target person has failed without performing authentication processing in a case where the certificate information is not acquired” limitation of claim 2 would never be performed since the certificate information is explicitly acquired from the mobile terminal in the previous limitation in claim 2.
Claim 6 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Levitov in view of Kawai et al. (US 2019/0080074 A1).
Regarding claim 6, Levitov teaches the authentication apparatus according to claim 1.
Levitov further teaches wherein the target area is associated in advance with authorized identification information that identifies at least one of an authorized person being the target person who has authority to enter the target area, and an authorized terminal being the mobile terminal carried by the authorized person, e.g., in block 560, the sensed biometric characteristic is compared with the biometric reference template, and if they match, as illustrated by decision block 570, then in block 580 the servicer is granted access to the currency repository 130 (Levitov-Fig. 5, el. 560; Para. 32), and
wherein the at least one processor is further configured to execute the instructions to:
acquire, from the mobile terminal, authentication identification information that identifies at least one of the target person and the mobile terminal, e.g., in block 550, the mobile biometric data collection device 400 transfers encrypted forms of the sensed biometric characteristic and the biometric reference template 450 to the DAD 120 for matching by the DAD 120 (Fig. 4, el. 450; Fig. 5, el. 550; Para. 32); in block 540, the mobile biometric data collection device 400 senses a biometric characteristic, such as a fingerprint or facial profile, from the servicer (Fig. 5, el. 540; Para. 32); the mobile biometric data collection device 400 has a memory module 455 storing a biometric reference template 450 of a currency-handling machine servicer and a biometric sensor 480 adapted to sense a biometric characteristic of the servicer for subsequent comparison with the biometric reference template 450 (Para. 31);
….
Levitov does not clearly teach to: set an expiration date of the authenticated information; and
perform at least the part of the processing, in a case where the authentication identification information is acquired within the expiration date, and the authentication identification information is included in the authorized identification information.
Kawai teaches wherein the target area is associated in advance with authorized identification information that identifies at least one of an authorized person being the target person who has authority to enter the target area, and an authorized terminal being the mobile terminal carried by the authorized person, e.g., the sign-in authenticator 11 receives from the application 31 a sign-in request specifying a user name and a password. The sign-in authenticator 11 authenticates the application 31 when the combination of the user name and the password included in the received sign-in request is recorded on a user/password correspondence DB 21 (Fig. 1, el. 11, 31; Para. 68); after authenticating the transmission source application having transmitted the sign-in request (the application 31), the sign-in authenticator 11 issues an access token to the application and records the access token on an access token DB 22, and the sign-in authenticator 11 transmits the issued access token to the transmission source application (the application 31) (Para. 69), and
wherein the at least one processor, e.g., CPU 111 (Fig. 2, el. 111), is further configured to execute the instructions to:
acquire, from the mobile terminal, e.g., terminal device 200 (Fig. 1, el. 200), authentication identification information that identifies at least one of the target person and the mobile terminal, e.g., the access token authenticator 12 receives an access request specifying an access token from the application 31 (Fig. 1, el. 12; Para. 71); the access token is data comprising a key and an authentication character string as described later, wherein the key is an identification number uniquely given by the server device 100 as information presenting an access token, wherein the authentication character string is a character string given by the server device 100 for indicating that the access token is rightful (Para. 73); wherein the access token includes a key and an authentication character string, an application ID that is an identification number presenting an application, a user name, an expiration date given to the access token, and a terminal identification code presenting a terminal device (Para. 105);
set an expiration date of the authenticated information, e.g., even with an application (or a terminal device) once authenticated and having an access token issued, the access token expires unless the application (the terminal device) is authenticated by a given expiration date (Para. 74); when the server device 100 authenticates an application (and a terminal device) with an access request including an access token, the server device 100 postpones the expiration date of the access token (Para. 75); and
perform at least the part of the processing, in a case where the authentication identification information is acquired within the expiration date, and the authentication identification information is included in the authorized identification information, e.g., the access token authenticator 12 receives an access request specifying an access token from the application 31, wherein if the access token included in the received access request is recorded on the access token DB 22 in association with a terminal identification code presenting the transmission source terminal device (the terminal device 200), the access token authenticator 12 authenticates the application 31 (Para. 71); when the server device 100 authenticates an application (and a terminal device) with an access request including an access token, the server device 100 postpones the expiration date of the access token (Para. 75).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Levitov to include to: set an expiration date of the authenticated information; and perform at least the part of the processing, in a case where the authentication identification information is acquired within the expiration date, and the authentication identification information is included in the authorized identification information, using the known method of issuing an access token in response to authenticating the user and authenticating the user using the access token if received before the token expiration date, as taught by Kawai, in combination with the biometric access control system of Levitov, for the purpose of reducing the workload of the user required for authentication (Kawai-Para. 72).
Claim 7 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Levitov in view of Kawai and further in view of Ghorpade et al. (US 2018/0061155 A1).
Regarding claim 7, Levitov in view of Kawai teaches the authentication apparatus according to claim 6.
Levitov in view of Kawai does not clearly teach wherein the at least one processor is further configured to execute the instructions to:
acquire schedule information indicating a schedule of the target person; and
set the expiration date for the target area by using the schedule information.
Ghorpade teaches to: acquire schedule information indicating a schedule of the target person, e.g., upon receiving the access details, the host server 100 proceeds to authenticate the access details in the first authentication process (Fig. 1, el. 100; Fig. 8A, el. 708; Para. 84), wherein the access details contain unique information that is specific to the facility 20 and may be further specific to the reservation or booking of the facility 20, wherein this information may include: A unique identifier of the facility 20; The dates and/or times/duration for using the facility 20; User ID or Group ID when reserving the facility 20; and Dynamic identifier based on the time stamp at the time of confirmation of the reservation at the end of the reservation process 600 (Fig. 7, el. 600; Para. 71); and
set the expiration date for the target area by using the schedule information, e.g., in a step 602, the user initiates the reservation process 600 by selecting the preferred facility 20 and the required dates and/or times/durations, and proceeding to confirm the reservation of facility 20 (Fig. 7, el. 602; Para. 66).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Levitov in view of Kawai to include to: acquire schedule information indicating a schedule of the target person; and set the expiration date for the target area by using the schedule information, using the known method of generating a set of facility access details that include the required dates and times for reserving the facility, as taught by Ghorpade, in combination with the biometric access control system and token expiration date of Levitov in view of Kawai, for the purpose of controlling access to a facility such that unauthenticated users are prevented from gaining access to the facility except for during specific dates and times.
Claim 8 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Levitov in view of Moriwaki et al. (US 2022/0012323 A1).
Regarding claim 8, Levitov teaches the authentication apparatus according to claim 1.
Levitov does not clearly teach wherein the at least one processor is further configured to execute the instructions to:
acquire position information for authentication indicating a position of the mobile terminal at a time when the mobile terminal acquires the biological information for authentication; and
perform at least the part of the processing, in a case where a positional relationship between a position indicated by the position information for authentication, and the target area satisfies a first criterion.
Moriwaki teaches to: acquire position information for authentication indicating a position of the mobile terminal, e.g., terminal device 10 (Fig. 1, el. 10), at a time when the mobile terminal acquires the biological information for authentication, e.g., the authentication data transmission unit 16d transmits the authentication data extracted by the authentication data extraction unit 16c, to the server device 20 (Fig. 1, el. 20; Fig. 4, el. 16c, 16d; Para. 55); the authentication data extraction unit 16c extracts, as the authentication data, a face image, a voice, and the content of utterance of the user (Para. 53); the authentication data extraction unit 16c acquire, as the authentication data, the position of the terminal device 10, identification information (ID) of the terminal device 10, user ID, biometric information of the user, and the like, wherein the position of the terminal device 10 may be specified through wireless communication by the communication unit 14, or by using a GPS or the like (Fig. 4, el. 14, 16c; Para. 54); and
perform at least the part of the processing, in a case where a positional relationship between a position indicated by the position information for authentication, and the target area satisfies a first criterion, e.g., face authentication, voiceprint authentication, moving image authentication, adequacy of position of terminal device, adequacy of terminal device, adequacy of time of operation, and the like are performed by the factor-based data processing unit 25c as individual authentication processes (Fig. 5, el. 25c; Para. 70).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Levitov to include to: acquire position information for authentication indicating a position of the mobile terminal at a time when the mobile terminal acquires the biological information for authentication; and perform at least the part of the processing, in a case where a positional relationship between a position indicated by the position information for authentication, and the target area satisfies a first criterion, using the known method of authenticating using the position of the terminal and biometrics of the user, as taught by Moriwaki, in combination with the biometric access control system of Levitov, for the purpose of aiding the prevention of an authorized user in a different location providing an unauthorized user access to a secured area.
Claim 9 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Levitov in view of Nakanishi Sei et al. (JP 2021139271 A).
Regarding claim 9, Levitov teaches the authentication apparatus according to claim 1.
Levitov further teaches wherein the at least one processor is further configured to execute the instructions to: acquire authentication…time information indicating a date and time when the mobile terminal acquires the biological information for authentication, e.g., a portion of the memory 260 on board the decryption board 240 of the DAD 200 is allocated to storing audit information 266, including a time-stamped log entry for each attempt to obtain service access and each grant of service access (Levitov-Para. 23); the mobile biometric data collection device 400 is equipped to log attempts to access a currency-handling machine 110, wherein logged information preferably includes an indicator of the identity of a person attempting to access the currency-handling machine 110, wherein this indicator may be biometric information derived from a biometric characteristic of the person sensed by the biometric sensor 480, wherein logged information may also include the time and/or location of an attempt to access a currency-handling machine 110 (Levitov-Para. 29).
Levitov does not clearly teach wherein the at least one processor is further configured to execute the instructions to:
acquire authentication date and time information indicating a date and time when the mobile terminal acquires the biological information for authentication; and
perform the authentication processing, in a case where a time difference from the date and the time indicated by the date and time information for authentication satisfies a second criterion.
Nakanishi Sei teaches to: acquire authentication date and time information indicating a date and time when the…terminal, e.g., image pickup device 42 (Fig. 1, el. 42), acquires the biological information for authentication, e.g., when the visitor's face is imaged by the camera of the image pickup device 42, the information related to the feature amount of the visitor's face image is transmitted from the image pickup device 42 to the face recognition cloud 14 of the face recognition system 10, and in addition, information on the date and time when the visitor's face image was captured by the imaging device 42 (hereinafter, also referred to as the imaging date and time) is also transmitted from the imaging device 42 to the face authentication cloud 14 of the face authentication system 10, and the identification information and the information regarding the imaging date and time are transmitted from the face recognition cloud 14 to the visitor reception system 12 (Translation-Page 5); and
perform the authentication processing, in a case where a time difference from the date and the time indicated by the date and time information for authentication satisfies a second criterion, e.g., the processor 12a of the visitor reception system 12 includes the visitor's name, the visitor's identification information and the imaging date and time, and the visitor's name and the visitor's identification information recorded in the memory 12b, and compare with the pre-registered visit date and time information, then, the visitor's name, the visitor's identification information, and the imaging date / time sent from the face authentication cloud 14 substantially match the visitor's name, the visitor's identification information, and the visit date / time information recorded in the memory 12b (Translation-Page 6).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Levitov to include to: acquire authentication date and time information indicating a date and time when the mobile terminal acquires the biological information for authentication; and perform the authentication processing, in a case where a time difference from the date and the time indicated by the date and time information for authentication satisfies a second criterion, using the known method of authenticating using the date and time a facial image was captured and the date and time when the visitor is scheduled, as taught by Nakanishi Sei, in combination with the biometric access control system of Levitov, for the purpose of ensuring the captured image is a fresh, recent image in order to authenticate the user.
Relevant Prior Art
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Atef Ayoub et al. (US 2023/0403163 A1)—Atef Ayoub discloses the embedded device processor 46 of the embedded device 44 may determine that the second device certificate 38 is valid by using the public key of the root certificate to authenticate the second controller 28 (block 708) (Fig. 7, el. 708; Para. 84).
Ho et al. (US 2016/0180618 A1)—Ho discloses managing access to a shared resource based on identity that is established by use of personal data, such as biometric data, a password, etc. An electronic lock can be used to restrict access to a shared resource, such as a house, a car, etc. (Abstract).
Troesch et al. (US 2021/0049847 A1)—Troesch discloses that an access control system receives a device-specific identifier of a mobile electronic device and an electronic reference template for facial parameters of a user. The reception takes place when the mobile device is located in a public zone, from which the user can request access to an access-restricted zone. An image processing unit generates a real-time template for facial features of the user based on an image of the user when the user requests access to the access-restricted zone. It determines if the real-time template matches a reference template stored in the memory unit to a defined degree, wherein the user is recognized as an access-requesting user in the event of a match (Abstract).
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JEREMY DUFFIELD whose telephone number is (571)270-1643. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday, 7:00 AM - 3:00 PM (ET).
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30 January 2026
/Jeremy S Duffield/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2498