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
The Examiner acknowledges the receipt of the Applicant’s amendment filed on 12/23/2025. Claim 10 is canceled. Claim 21 has been added. Claims 1-9 and 11-21 are currently pending in the present application.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments, see Applicant Arguments/Remarks, filed 12/23/2025, with respect to the rejection(s) of claim(s) 1-9 and 11-20 have been fully considered and are persuasive. Therefore, the rejection has been withdrawn. However, upon further consideration, a new ground(s) of rejection is made in view of He et al. (US 10,430,784 herein He), and further in view of Hamilton et al. (US 2018/0096329 herein Hamilton).
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 factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claims 1-9 and 11-21 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over He et al. (US 10,430,784 herein He), and further in view of Hamilton et al. (US 2018/0096329 herein Hamilton).
Regarding claim 1, He teaches a near field communication (NFC) reader (read
as NFC-enabled electronic device) (He - Figure 1, column 4 lines 9-57), comprising:
a plurality of transmit antennas (read as wireless communication interface 108 may include suitable wireless communications hardware such as antennas, matching circuitry, etc.) (He - column 10 lines 36-49);
a transmitter coupled to the plurality of transmit antennas (read as payment terminal may have an antenna for transmitting a RF signal to allow the payment terminal to communicate data wirelessly with a payment device; payment server 40 may also transmit additional information such as transaction identifiers to payment terminal 20) (He - column 2 lines 58-67, column 3 lines 1-4, column 4 lines 55-57);
at least one receive antenna (read as antenna can be a multi-layer antenna wherein the first layer and the second layer can receive the signal to be transmitted from corresponding terminals) (He - column 3 lines 5-16); and
circuitry coupled to the at least one receive antenna and configured to analyze at least one signal received by the at least one receive antenna from an antenna circuit of a remote NFC device inductively coupled to the at least one receive antenna (read as processing circuitry of the payment device 10 is able to demodulate the received signal and process the data that is received from payment reader 22) (He - column 6 lines 1-19).
However, He fails to teach the circuitry configured to determine a location of the remote NFC device from the at least one receive antenna based on the at least one signal and to select a transmit antenna from the plurality of transmit antennas to communicate with the remote NFC device based on the determined location.
In the related art, Hamilton teaches the circuitry configured to determine a location of the remote NFC device from the at least one receive antenna based on the at least one signal (read as reader 5 includes sensor 126 such as transmitter/receiver of an antenna sub-system, and the like; components can support functionalities including location tracking, location detection, etc.; reader characteristics include: detection of location based on change in timing parameters, radiated performance, wireless performance, quality of communication links, radio frequency response, transmission measurements, receiver measurements, location values, etc.) (Hamilton – [0093], [0096]) and to select a transmit antenna from the plurality of transmit antennas to communicate with the remote NFC device based on the determined location (read as POS terminal 15 uses radio communication techniques or other location detection techniques to measure signal strength from the devices within the geo-fence to determine which device is the closest; establishes communication links with selected ports and makes such connections) (Hamilton – [0099], [0101], [0106]).
Therefore it would have been obvious to one or ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to incorporate the teachings of Hamilton into the teachings of He for the purpose of providing a secure payment environment to determine location or proximity of NFC devices and selecting which NFC devices to communicate with to prevent fraud or unapproved transactions.
Regarding claim 2 as applied to claim 1, He as modified by Hamilton further teaches comprises a multiplexer connected between the transmitter and the plurality of transmit antennas (read as selection circuit 514 is implemented in hardware and depicted as a conventional two-input multiplexer) (He - Figure 5).
Regarding claim 3 as applied to claim 2, He as modified by Hamilton further teaches wherein the circuitry is configured to control the multiplexer such that the selected transmit antenna from the plurality of transmit antennas receives carrier signals from the transmitter (read as selection circuit 514 is implemented in hardware and depicted as a conventional two-input multiplexer) (He - Figure 5).
Regarding claim 4 as applied to claim 3, He as modified by Hamilton further teaches wherein the circuitry is further configured to control the multiplexer such that non-selected transmit antennas from the plurality of transmit antennas are prevented from receiving carrier signals from the transmitter (read as selection circuit 514 is implemented in hardware and depicted as a conventional two-input multiplexer) (He - Figure 5).
Regarding claim 5 as applied to claim 1, He as modified by Hamilton further teaches wherein the circuitry is configured to determine a transmit antenna of the plurality of transmit antennas closest to the remote NFC device based on the determined location (read as reader 5 includes sensor 126 such as transmitter/receiver of an antenna sub-system, and the like; components can support functionalities including location tracking, location detection, etc.; reader characteristics include: detection of location based on change in timing parameters, radiated performance, wireless performance, quality of communication links, radio frequency response, transmission measurements, receiver measurements, location values, etc.) (Hamilton – [0093], [0096]) and to select the closest transmit antenna of the plurality of transmit antennas to communicate with the remote NFC device (read as POS terminal 15 uses radio communication techniques or other location detection techniques to measure signal strength from the devices within the geo-fence to determine which device is the closest; establishes communication links with selected ports and makes such connections) (Hamilton – [0099], [0101], [0106]).
Regarding claim 6 as applied to claim 1, He as modified by Hamilton further teaches wherein the circuitry is configured to determine a change in location of the remote NFC device from the at least one receive antenna based on the at least one signal (read as reader 5 includes sensor 126 such as transmitter/receiver of an antenna sub-system, and the like; components can support functionalities including location tracking, location detection, etc.; reader characteristics include: detection of location based on change in timing parameters, radiated performance, wireless performance, quality of communication links, radio frequency response, transmission measurements, receiver measurements, location values, etc.) (Hamilton – [0093], [0096]) and to select a transmit antenna of the plurality of transmit antennas based on the determined change in location of the remote NFC device (read as POS terminal 15 uses radio communication techniques or other location detection techniques to measure signal strength from the devices within the geo-fence to determine which device is the closest; establishes communication links with selected ports and makes such connections) (Hamilton – [0099], [0101], [0106]).
Regarding claim 7 as applied to claim 1, He as modified by Hamilton further teaches wherein the plurality of transmit antennas are positioned at different locations of the NFC reader (read as use of NFC for payment transactions requires the antenna of the customer's NFC-capable payment device to be placed in close proximity to the antenna of the merchant's NFC-capable payment terminal in order to inductively couple the NFC communication devices for the exchange of data between the two NFC communication devices; antenna of the merchant's NFC-capable payment terminal may have several locations) (He - column 1 lines 34-57).
Regarding claim 8 as applied to claim 7, He as modified by Hamilton further teaches wherein at least one transmit antenna of the plurality of transmit antennas overlaps another transmit antenna of the plurality of transmit antennas (read as wherein the second circuit path substantially overlaps the first circuit path on a portion of the second surface that is opposite the first circuit path) (He - see claim 5).
Regarding claim 9 as applied to claim 1, He as modified by Hamilton further teaches wherein the circuitry is configured to determine a transmit antenna of the plurality of transmit antennas that provides a strongest wireless carrier signal to the remote NFC device and to select the transmit antenna providing the strongest wireless carrier signal to communicate with the remote NFC device (read as use of NFC for payment transactions requires the antenna of the customer's NFC-capable payment device to be placed in close proximity to the antenna of the merchant's NFC-capable payment terminal in order to inductively couple the NFC communication devices for the exchange of data between the two NFC communication devices; the increase in current density for the antenna 440 from the terminal alignment of the first circuit path 212 and the second circuit path 214 can result in a predetermined flux pattern with a stronger and more uniformed magnetic flux in the magnetic field generated by antenna 440) (He – Figure 4, column 1 lines 34-57).
Regarding claim 11, He teaches a near field communication (NFC) method (read as NFC-enabled electronic device) (He - Figure 1, column 4 lines 9-57), comprising:
transmitting a wireless carrier signal generated by a transmitter from an NFC reader (read as payment terminal may have an antenna for transmitting a RF signal to allow the payment terminal to communicate date wirelessly with a payment device; payment server 40 may also transmit additional information such as transaction identifiers to payment terminal 20) (He - column 2 lines 58-67, column 3 lines 1-4; column 4 lines 55-57);
receiving at least one signal from an inductively coupled remote NFC device with at least one receive antenna of the NFC reader, the at least one signal formed by load modulation of the wireless carrier signal by an antenna circuit of the remote NFC device (read as chip card 14 that is inductively coupled to payment reader 22 may communicate with payment reader 22 using load modulation of a wireless carrier signal that is provided by payment reader 22) (He - column 5 lines 19-38);
analyzing the at least one signal received by the at least one receive antenna from the antenna circuit of the remote NFC device (read as processing circuitry of the payment device 10 is able to demodulate the received signal and process the data that is received from payment reader 22) (He - column 6 lines 1-19).
However, He fails to teach determining a location of the remote NFC device from the at least one receive antenna based on analyzing the at least one signal; and selecting a transmit antenna from a plurality of transmit antennas to transmit the wireless carrier signal from the transmitter to the remote NFC device based on the determined location.
In the related art, Hamilton teaches determining a location of the remote NFC device from the at least one receive antenna based on analyzing the at least one signal (read as reader 5 includes sensor 126 such as transmitter/receiver of an antenna sub-system, and the like; components can support functionalities including location tracking, location detection, etc.; reader characteristics include: detection of location based on change in timing parameters, radiated performance, wireless performance, quality of communication links, radio frequency response, transmission measurements, receiver measurements, location values, etc.) (Hamilton – [0093], [0096]); and selecting a transmit antenna from a plurality of transmit antennas to transmit the wireless carrier signal from the transmitter to the remote NFC device based on the determined location (read as POS terminal 15 uses radio communication techniques or other location detection techniques to measure signal strength from the devices within the geo-fence to determine which device is the closest; establishes communication links with selected ports and makes such connections) (Hamilton – [0099], [0101], [0106]).
Therefore it would have been obvious to one or ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to incorporate the teachings of Hamilton into the teachings of He for the purpose of providing a secure payment environment to determine location or proximity of NFC devices and selecting which NFC devices to communicate with to prevent fraud or unapproved transactions.
Regarding claim 12 as applied to claim 11, He as modified by Hamilton further teaches comprises controlling a multiplexer connected between the transmitter and the plurality of transmit antennas such that the selected transmit antenna receives the wireless carrier signal from the transmitter (read as selection circuit 514 is implemented in hardware and depicted as a conventional two-input multiplexer) (He - Figure 5).
Regarding claim 13 as applied to claim 12, He as modified by Hamilton further teaches comprises controlling the multiplexer such that non-selected transmit antennas from the plurality of transmit antennas are prevented from receiving carrier signals from the transmitter (read as selection circuit 514 is implemented in hardware and depicted as a conventional two-input multiplexer) (He - Figure 5).
Regarding claim 14 as applied to claim 11, He as modified by Hamilton further teaches wherein selected the transmit antenna from the plurality of transmit antennas includes determining the transmit antenna of the plurality of transmit antennas closest to the remote NFC device based on the determined location (read as payment server processes payment transactions based on the payment information as well as information such as merchant, location, etc.) (He - column 2 lines 45-57).
Regarding claim 15 as applied to claim 11, He as modified by Hamilton further teaches comprising: determining a change in location of the remote NFC device from the at least one receive antenna based on the at least one signal (read as reader 5 includes sensor 126 such as transmitter/receiver of an antenna sub-system, and the like; components can support functionalities including location tracking, location detection, etc.; reader characteristics include: detection of location based on change in timing parameters, radiated performance, wireless performance, quality of communication links, radio frequency response, transmission measurements, receiver measurements, location values, etc.) (Hamilton – [0093], [0096]); and selecting a transmit antenna of the plurality of transmit antennas based on the determined change in location of the remote NFC device (read as POS terminal 15 uses radio communication techniques or other location detection techniques to measure signal strength from the devices within the geo-fence to determine which device is the closest; establishes communication links with selected ports and makes such connections) (Hamilton – [0099], [0101], [0106]).
Regarding claim 16 as applied to claim 11, He as modified by Hamilton further teaches wherein selecting a transmit antenna from a plurality of transmit antennas includes determining the transmit antenna of the plurality of transmit antennas that provides a strongest wireless carrier signal to the remote NFC device (read as POS terminal 15 uses radio communication techniques or other location detection techniques to measure signal strength from the devices within the geo-fence to determine which device is the closest; establishes communication links with selected ports and makes such connections) (Hamilton – [0099], [0101], [0106]).
Regarding claim 17 as applied to claim 11, He as modified by Hamilton further teaches wherein selecting a transmit antenna from a plurality of transmit antennas includes enabling the selected transmit antenna from the plurality of transmit antennas to receive carrier signals from a transmitter and preventing non-selected transmit antennas from the plurality of transmit antennas from receiving carrier signals from the transmitter (read as use of NFC for payment transactions requires the antenna of the customer's NFC- capable payment device to be placed in close proximity to the antenna of the merchant's NFC-capable payment terminal in order to inductively couple the NFC communication devices for the exchange of data between the two NFC communication devices; the increase in current density for the antenna 440 from the terminal alignment of the first circuit path 212 and the second circuit path 214 can result in a predetermined flux pattern with a stronger and more uniform magnetic flux in the magnetic field generated by antenna 440) (He - Figure 4, column 1 lines 34-57).
Regarding claim 18, He teaches a payment system (read as payment system 1) (He - Figure 2, column 5 lines 4-18), comprising:
a payment reader configured to communicate via near field communication (NFC) with a payment device having an antenna circuit, the payment reader configured to receive payment information from the payment device and to process a payment transaction based on the received payment information (read as payment terminal 20 may incorporate a payment reader 22 and a merchant device 29; the payment reader 22 of payment terminal 20 may be a wireless communication device that facilitates transactions between the payment device 10 and a merchant device 29 running a point- of-sale application) (He - Figure 2, column 5 lines 4-18), the payment reader comprising:
a plurality of transmit antennas (read as wireless communication interface 108 may include suitable wireless communications hardware such as antennas, matching circuitry, etc.) (He - column 10 lines 36-49);
a transmitter coupled to the plurality of transmit antennas (read as payment terminal may have an antenna for transmitting a RF signal to allow the payment terminal to communicate date wirelessly with a payment device; payment server 40 may also transmit additional information such as transaction identifiers to payment terminal 20) (He - column 2 lines 58-67, column 3 lines 1-4; column 4 lines 55-57);
at least one receive antenna for receiving at least one signal transmitted to the payment reader by the antenna circuit of the payment device (read as antenna can be a multi-layer antenna wherein the first layer and the second layer can receive the signal to be transmitted from corresponding terminals) (He - column 3 lines 5-16); and
circuitry coupled to the at least one receive antenna and configured to analyze the at least one signal received from the antenna circuit of the payment device (read as processing circuitry of the payment device 10 is able to demodulate the received signal and process the data that is received from payment reader 22) (He - column 6 lines 1- 19).
However, He fails to teach the circuitry configured to determine a location of the payment device from the at least one receive antenna based on the at least one signal and to select a transmit antenna from the plurality of transmit antennas to communicate with the payment device based on the determined location.
In the related art, Hamilton teaches the circuitry configured to determine a location of the payment device from the at least one receive antenna based on the at least one signal (read as reader 5 includes sensor 126 such as transmitter/receiver of an antenna sub-system, and the like; components can support functionalities including location tracking, location detection, etc.; reader characteristics include: detection of location based on change in timing parameters, radiated performance, wireless performance, quality of communication links, radio frequency response, transmission measurements, receiver measurements, location values, etc.) (Hamilton – [0093], [0096]) and to select a transmit antenna from the plurality of transmit antennas to communicate with the payment device based on the determined location (read as POS terminal 15 uses radio communication techniques or other location detection techniques to measure signal strength from the devices within the geo-fence to determine which device is the closest; establishes communication links with selected ports and makes such connections) (Hamilton – [0099], [0101], [0106]).
Therefore it would have been obvious to one or ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to incorporate the teachings of Hamilton into the teachings of He for the purpose of providing a secure payment environment to determine location or proximity of NFC devices and selecting which NFC devices to communicate with to prevent fraud or unapproved transactions.
Regarding claim 19 as applied to claim 18, He as modified by Hamilton further teaches wherein the circuitry is configured to enable the selected transmit antenna from the plurality of transmit antennas to receive carrier signals from the transmitter and to prevent non-selected transmit antennas from the plurality of transmit antennas from receiving carrier signals from the transmitter (read as NFC for payment transactions requires the antenna of the customer's NFC capable payment device to be placed in close proximity to the antenna of the merchant's NFC-capable payment terminal in order to inductively couple the NFC communication devices for the exchange of data between the two NFC communication devices; the antenna of the merchant's NFC- capable payment terminal may have several locations; when the customer's NFC-capable payment device is located in one of the "dead zones," the merchant's NFC-capable payment terminal may not be able to inductively couple with the customer's NFC-capable payment device, thereby preventing or limiting the exchange of data between the devices) (He - column 1 lines 34-57).
Regarding claim 20 as applied to claim 18, He as modified by Hamilton further teaches wherein the plurality of transmit antennas are positioned at different locations of the NFC reader and at least one transmit antenna of the plurality of transmit antennas overlaps another transmit antenna of the plurality of transmit antennas (read as wherein the second circuit path substantially overlaps the first circuit path on a portion of the second surface that is opposite the first circuit path) (He - see claim 5).
Regarding claim 21 as applied to claim 1, He as modified by Hamilton further teaches wherein the circuitry is further configured to disable at least one of the plurality of antennas not selected for communication with the NFC device (read as previously known but disabled reader; previously known but disabled payment application) (Hamilton – [0020]).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to APRIL GUZMAN GONZALES whose telephone number is (571)270-1101. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 8:00 am to 4:00 pm EST.
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/APRIL G GONZALES/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2648
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