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 .
Response to Amendment
This office action is written in response to an amendment filed on 2/10/2026. As directed by amendment: Claims 1, 6-8, 11, and 14-20 were amended. No new claims were added. Claims 9 and 22-23 were cancelled. Thus, Claims 1-8 and 10-21 are presently pending in this application.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to Claims 11-13 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
Claim Objections
Claims 1, 11, 14, 17, and 20 are objected to because of the following informalities:
In Claim 1, line 7, the first occurrence of “CT” should be spelled out.
In Claim 11, line 4, the first occurrence of “CT” should be spelled out.
In Claim 14, line 5, the first occurrence of “CT” should be spelled out.
In Claim 17, line 6, the first occurrence of “CT” should be spelled out.
In Claim 20, line 5, the first occurrence of “CT” should be spelled out.
Appropriate correction is required.
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.
The test for obviousness is not whether the features of a secondary reference may be bodily incorporated into the structure of the primary reference; nor is it that the claimed invention must be expressly suggested in any one or all of the references. Rather, the test is what the combined teachings of the references would have suggested to those of ordinary skill in the art. See In re Keller, 642 F.2d 413, 208 USPQ 871 (CCPA 1981).
Claims 11-13 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Asthana et al (“Asthana”, US 20070276908) in view of Alzate Perez et al (“Perez”, US 20170249661) in further view of Atwater et al (“Atwater”, US 20210103673).
Regarding Claim 11, Asthana teaches a method of linking at least two consumer access devices located at separate premises so that their respective consumers can interact via their consumer access devices, the method comprising:
receiving, from a first consumer access device or a first user device associated with a first consumer access device, an indication of the identity of another consumer (Fig. 4, element 51, par 23-24),
confirming that the another consumer has a second consumer access device (Fig. 4, element 51, par 23-24),
sending an invitation to the second consumer access device or to a second user device associated with a second consumer access device, the invitation identifying the consumer associated with the first consumer access device (Fig. 4, element 51, par 23-24),
and in response to a positive reply from the second consumer access device or from the second user device associated with a second consumer access device, storing data identifying that the first and second consumer access devices are linked and communicating link data to the first and second consumer access devices (Fig. 4, element 51, par 23-24; par 31-32; Fig. 3, elements {40, 43}, par 33-34).
Asthana does not explicitly teach consumer access devices located at separate premises in a smart energy system; each consumer access device connected to a respective smart energy meter or CT clamp for receiving secure utility data representing utility usage.
Perez teaches consumer access devices located at separate premises in a smart energy system (par 24);
each consumer access device connected to a respective smart energy meter or CT clamp for receiving utility data representing utility usage (par 24).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the invention of Asthana with the smart meter of Perez because it monitors energy for billing purposes (Perez; par 24), which is helpful for reducing energy consumption.
Asthana and Perez do not explicitly teach secure utility data.
Atwater teaches secure utility data (par 100-102).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the invention of Asthana and Perez with the encryption of Atwater because it improves security of data by converting data into an unreadable format until the data is decrypted.
Regarding Claim 13, Asthana, Perez, and Atwater teach the method of claim 11.
Asthana further teaches wherein the indication of the identity of the another consumer comprises at least one of
street address,
customer number,
customer name (Fig. 4, element 51, par 23-24),
postal code and property number,
and unique consumer access device identity.
Claim 12 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Asthana, Perez, and Atwater in view of Viger et al (“Viger”, US 20050198118).
Regarding Claim 12, Asthana, Perez, and Atwater teach the method of claim 11.
Asthana, Perez, and Atwater do not explicitly teach wherein the link data communicated to the first and second consumer access devices comprises address data for a peer-to-peer connection between the first and second consumer devices.
Viger teaches wherein the link data communicated to the first and second consumer access devices comprises address data for a peer-to-peer connection between the first and second consumer devices (par 196; par 227).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the invention of Asthana, Perez, and Atwater with the peer-to-peer connectivity of Viger because it reduces latency and reduces/eliminates the need for a dedicated server, thereby conserving resources.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-8, 10, and 14-21 are allowed.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
In interpreting the currently amended claims, in light of the specification, the Examiner finds the claimed invention to be patentably distinct from the prior art of record.
Regarding Claims 1-8 and 10, the closest prior art of record Bang et al (US 20200084060) in view of Zakaria et al (US 9838390, included in IDS filed 6/17/2024) in further view of Alzate Perez et al (US 20170249661) and in even further view of Atwater et al (US 20210103673) does not teach a consumer access device for a smart energy system, the consumer access device comprising: a processor, first memory for storing at least one application, second memory for secure storage of data representing utility usage, a first transceiver configured to communicate with a domestic smart meter or CT clamp to receive secure utility data representing utility usage from the domestic smart meter or CT clamp, and a second transceiver configured to communicate with at least one server, the processor being programmed to store the secure utility data representing the utility usage received via the first transceiver in the second memory, the processor also being programmed to execute at least one application stored in the first memory, the processor further being programmed to request that the server establish a link with another consumer access device, the processor additionally being programmed to respond to a request from a server to establish a link with at least one further consumer access device, to accept the request.
Regarding Claims 14-16, the closest prior art of record Bang et al (US 20200084060) in view of Zakaria et al (US 9838390, included in IDS filed 6/17/2024) in further view of Alzate Perez et al (US 20170249661) and in even further view of Atwater et al (US 20210103673) does not teach a method of communicating first data to both a first consumer access device and a second consumer access device, each of the first and second consumer access devices comprising a processor, first memory for storing at least one application, second memory for secure storage of data representing utility usage, a first transceiver configured to communicate with a domestic smart meter or CT clamp to receive second data comprising secure utility data representing utility usage from the domestic smart meter or CT clamp, and a second transceiver configured to communicate with at least one server, the processor being programmed to store the second data received via the first transceiver in the second memory, the processor also being programmed to execute at least one application stored in the first memory, the processor further being programmed to request that the server establish a link with another consumer access device, the processor additionally being programmed to respond to a request from a server to establish a link with at least one further consumer access device, to accept the request, the method comprising: receiving, at a server, a request from the first consumer access device or a first user device associated with the first consumer access device to communicate first data to the first and second consumer access devices, confirming that the first and second consumer access devices comprise linked consumer access devices, and communicating the first data to the first and second consumer access devices.
Regarding Claims 17-19, the closest prior art of record Bang et al (US 20200084060) in view of Zakaria et al (US 9838390, included in IDS filed 6/17/2024) in further view of Alzate Perez et al (US 20170249661) and in even further view of Atwater et al (US 20210103673) does not teach a method of communicating data between a first consumer access device and a second consumer access device, each of the first and second consumer access devices comprising a processor, first memory for storing at least one application, second memory for secure storage of second data comprising secure utility data representing utility usage, a first transceiver configured to communicate with a domestic smart meter or CT clamp to receive the second data from the domestic smart meter or CT clamp, and a second transceiver configured to communicate with at least one server, the processor being programmed to store the second data received via the first transceiver in the second memory, the processor also being programmed to execute at least one application stored in the first memory, the processor further being programmed to request that the server establish a link with another consumer access device, the processor additionally being programmed to respond to a request from a server to establish a link with at least one further consumer access device, to accept the request, the method comprising: receiving, at a server, a request from the first consumer access device to communicate first data to the second consumer access device, confirming that the first and second consumer access devices comprise linked consumer access devices, and sending the first data to the second consumer access device.
Regarding Claims 20-21, the closest prior art of record Bang et al (US 20200084060) in view of Zakaria et al (US 9838390, included in IDS filed 6/17/2024) in further view of Alzate Perez et al (US 20170249661) and in even further view of Sohail et al (“Sohail”, US 20200403991) does not teach a method of sharing energy usage data between at least a first consumer access device and a second consumer access device, each of the first and second consumer access devices comprising a processor, first memory for storing at least one application, second memory for secure storage of data comprising secure utility data representing utility usage, a first transceiver configured to communicate with a domestic smart meter or CT clamp to receive the secure utility data from the domestic smart meter or CT clamp, and a second transceiver configured to communicate with at least one server, the processor being programmed to store the secure utility data received via the first transceiver in the second memory, the processor also being programmed to execute at least one application stored in the first memory, the processor further being programmed to request that the server establish a link with another consumer access device, the processor additionally being programmed to respond to a request from a server to establish a link with at least one further consumer access device, to accept the request, the method comprising: receiving energy usage data from the first consumer access device, and sending energy usage data to the second consumer access device.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure:
Ngo et al (US 20220019995), Abstract - Techniques for enhancing the security of a communication device when conducting a transaction using the communication device may include encrypting account information with a first encryption key to generate a second encryption key, and encrypting key index information using the second key to generate a limited-use key (LUK). The key index information may include a key index having information pertaining to generation of the LUK. The LUK and the key index can be provided to the communication device to facilitate generation of a transaction cryptogram for a transaction conducted using the communication device, and the transaction can be authorized based on the transaction cryptogram generated from the LUK.
Hrabak (US 20150024686), Abstract - Secure simple pairing is provided by receiving, from a mobile communications device, vehicle information and an identifier of the mobile communications device, identifying a vehicle from the vehicle information, and sending the vehicle information and the identifier of the mobile communications device to the vehicle. The vehicle initiates a communication with the mobile communications device using the vehicle information and the identifier of the mobile communications device.
Hegde et al (US 20200404495), Abstract - Systems, methods, and computer readable media for performing mobile interactions using a mobile communication device and an access device without a connection to a data network. An access device can provide the mobile communication device with a value request message requesting access tokens for an interaction. The mobile communication device provides access data including a plurality of access tokens to the access device. The access device can use the access tokens to gain access to value elements stored in data lockers of the mobile communication device. Upon receipt of the value elements, the access device may provide the mobile communication device with access to a resource.
Hurry et al (US 20210326866), Abstract - Systems and methods are disclosed for securely communicating sensitive such as an identifier. An encrypted value may be generated utilizing at least a portion of the identifier, a dynamic value, and an encryption key. An obfuscated identifier may be generated using at least a portion of the unencrypted identifier and a portion of the encrypted value. The obfuscated identifier and the encrypted value may be provided in a message to inhibit potential fraudsters from obtaining the identifier.
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.
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/RAQIUL A CHOUDHURY/Examiner, Art Unit 2444