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 .
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.
Claims 1-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 because the claimed invention is directed to an abstract idea without significantly more.
Step 1: Whether a Claim is to a Statutory Category
In the instant case, claims 1-9 recite system/ machine claims, claims 10-16 recite system/ machine claims and claims 17-20 recite method/ process claims that are performing a series of functions. Therefore, these claims fall within the four statutory categories of invention of a process and a machine. Step 1 is satisfied.
Step2A – Prong 1: Does the Claim Recite a Judicial Exception
Claim 1 (and similarly claims 10 and 17) recites the following abstract concepts that are found to include an enumerated “abstract idea”:
An electronic drive-through delivery system operating within a restaurant's land parcel to serve customers in vehicles, the system comprising:
(a.) an electronic ordering system configured to receive and process customer orders, the electronic ordering system comprising:
(i.) a plurality of electronic kiosks, each electronic kiosk comprising a screen and a processing unit, each processing unit running a client-side application configured to visually output an interface onto the screen of its kiosk;
(ii.) a central server that is communicatively connected to the plurality of electronic kiosks, the server running a server-side order processing application configured to receive customer orders placed via the kiosk interface, the server-side order processing application further configured to process the orders for preparation and delivery of ordered items;
(b.) a lane system established in the land parcel and configured to minimize a backup queue of customers and to eliminate a bottleneck of exiting customers, the lane system comprising:
(i.) a plurality of angled drive-through slots at which the plurality of electronic kiosks are positioned, each slot corresponding with one kiosk, the slots receiving customers in their vehicles;
(ii.) an entrance lane;
(iii.) an egress lane, the egress lane being accessible from the entrance lane via the angled drive-through slots, the drive-through slots being angled relative to the entrance and egress lanes; and,
wherein the ordered items are delivered by runners to the customers parked in the angled drive-through slots.
[Emphasis added to show the bolded abstract idea being executed by unbolded additional elements that do not meaningfully limit the abstract idea]
This system claim is grouped within the "certain methods of organizing human activity” grouping of abstract ideas in prong one of step 2A of the Alice/Mayo test because the claims involve a series of steps for following rules or instructions to minimize a backup queue of customers and to eliminate a bottleneck of exiting customers which is a process that is encompassed by the abstract idea of managing personal behavior. See MPEP (2106.04)(a)(2)(II)(C) and Subject Matter Eligibility example 37. Accordingly, claim 1 (and similarly claims 10 and 17) recites an abstract idea.
Step2A – Prong 2: Does the Claim Recite Additional Elements that Integrate the Judicial Exception into a Practical Application
This judicial exception is not integrated into a practical application because, when analyzed under prong two of step 2A of the Alice/Mayo test, the additional elements of the claims such as electronic ordering system, electronic kiosks, screen, processing unit, client-side application, central server, server-side order processing application, interface merely use a computer as a tool to perform an abstract idea while lane system, land parcel, angled drive-through slots, entrance lane and egress lane generally link the use of a judicial exception to a particular technological environment. Specifically, the electronic ordering system, electronic kiosks, screen, processing unit, client-side application, central server, server-side order processing application, interface, lane system, land parcel, angled drive-through slots, entrance lane and egress lane perform the steps or functions of following rules or instructions to minimize a backup queue of customers and to eliminate a bottleneck of exiting customers. The use of a processor/computer as a tool to implement the abstract idea and/or generally linking the use of the abstract idea to a particular technological environment does not integrate the abstract idea into a practical application because it requires no more than a computer (or technical elements disclosed at a high level of generality such as electronic ordering system, electronic kiosks, screen, processing unit, client-side application, central server, server-side order processing application, interface, lane system, land parcel, angled drive-through slots, entrance lane and egress lane) performing functions of receiving, processing, running, outputting, communicating, minimize, eliminating, accessing and delivering that correspond to acts required to carry out the abstract idea or merely attempt to limit the use of the abstract idea to a particular technological environment (MPEP 2106.05(f) and (h)). Accordingly, the additional elements do not impose any meaningful limits on practicing the abstract idea, and the claims are directed to an abstract idea.
Step2B: Does the Claim Amount to Significantly More
The claims do not include additional elements that are sufficient to amount to significantly more than the judicial exception because, when analyzed under step 2B of the Alice/Mayo test, the additional elements of electronic ordering system, electronic kiosks, screen, processing unit, client-side application, central server, server-side order processing application, interface, lane system, land parcel, angled drive-through slots, entrance lane and egress lane being used to perform the steps of receiving, processing, running, outputting, communicating, minimize, eliminating, accessing and delivering amounts to no more than using a computer or processor to automate and/or implement the abstract idea of managing personal behavior by following rules or instructions to minimize a backup queue of customers and to eliminate a bottleneck of exiting customers. As discussed above, taking the claim elements separately, electronic ordering system, electronic kiosks, screen, processing unit, client-side application, central server, server-side order processing application, interface, lane system, land parcel, angled drive-through slots, entrance lane and egress lane performs the steps or functions of managing personal behavior by following rules or instructions to minimize a backup queue of customers and to eliminate a bottleneck of exiting customers. These functions correspond to the actions required to perform the abstract idea. Viewed as a whole, the combination of elements recited in the claims merely recite the concept of managing personal behavior by following rules or instructions to minimize a backup queue of customers and to eliminate a bottleneck of exiting customers because said combination of elements remains disclosed at a high level of generality. Therefore, the use of these additional elements does no more than employ the computer as a tool to automate and/or implement the abstract idea. The use of a computer or processor to merely automate and/or implement the abstract idea cannot provide significantly more than the abstract idea itself (MPEP 2106.05(l)(A)(f) & (h)). Therefore, the claims are not patent eligible.
Independent claim 10 describes the abstract idea of managing personal behavior by following rules or instructions to receive customer orders. Independent claim 10 does not include additional elements to perform the respective functions of receiving and communicating beyond technical elements disclosed at a high level of generality, such as electronic kiosks, central order-processing server, angled drive-through slots, entrance lane, egress lane, canopy structure and parking spaces that integrate the abstract idea into a practical application or that provide significantly more than the abstract idea for the same reasons as noted above regarding claim 1. Therefore, independent claim 10 is also not patent eligible.
Independent claim 17 describes the abstract idea of managing personal behavior by following rules or instructions to deliver an order to a customer. Independent claim 17 does not include additional elements to perform the respective functions of entering, using, pulling, placing, providing, paying, processing, communicating, preparing, delivering and exiting beyond technical elements disclosed at a high level of generality, such as electronic drive-through delivery system, land parcel, entrance lane, drive-through slot, kiosk, screen, interface, client-side application, server and egress lance that integrate the abstract idea into a practical application or that provide significantly more than the abstract idea for the same reasons as noted above regarding claim 1. Therefore, independent claim 17 is also not patent eligible.
Dependent claims 2-9 further describe the abstract idea of managing personal behavior by following rules or instructions to minimize a backup queue of customers and to eliminate a bottleneck of exiting customers. Said dependent claims merely show descriptive material relating to the environment of use of the abstract idea or do not include additional elements to perform the respective functions of ordering, paying, transitioning and communicating beyond the technical elements disclosed at a high level of generality, such as, entrance lane, angled drive-through slot, egress lane, vehicle, intermediary lanes, point-of-sale system, central server and as disclosed in independent claim 1 that integrate the abstract idea into a practical application or that provide significantly more than the abstract idea. Therefore, said dependent claims are also not patent eligible. Further, the dependency of these claims on ineligible independent claim 1 also renders said dependent claims as not patent eligible.
Dependent claims 11-16 further describe the abstract idea of managing personal behavior by following rules or instructions to receive customer orders. Said dependent claims merely show descriptive material relating to the environment of use of the abstract idea or do not include additional elements to perform the respective functions of running, outputting, receiving, placing, processing, ordering, paying, transitioning, connecting and communicating beyond the technical elements disclosed at a high level of generality, such as, electronic kiosk, entrance lane, angled drive-through slot, egress lane, parking space, screen, processing unit, client-side order processing application, interface, central order processing server, server-side order processing application, kiosk interface, vehicle, intermediary lanes, point-of-sale system and disclosed in independent claim 10 that integrate the abstract idea into a practical application or that provide significantly more than the abstract idea. Therefore, said dependent claims are also not patent eligible. Further, the dependency of these claims on ineligible independent claim 10 also renders said dependent claims as not patent eligible.
Dependent claims 18-20 further describe the abstract idea of managing personal behavior by following rules or instructions to deliver an order to a customer. Said dependent claims merely show descriptive material relating to the environment of use of the abstract idea or do not include additional elements to perform the respective functions of ordering, paying, minimizing, eliminating and transitioning beyond the technical elements disclosed at a high level of generality, such as, delivery system, entrance lane, angled drive-through slot, egress lane, vehicle and as disclosed in independent claim 17 that integrate the abstract idea into a practical application or that provide significantly more than the abstract idea. Therefore, said dependent claims are also not patent eligible. Further, the dependency of these claims on ineligible independent claim 17 also renders said dependent claims as not patent eligible.
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.
Claims 1-4 and 17-18 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Bridgman et al. (US 2011/0139545 A1) in view of Cioarga et al. (US 2022/0382504 A1).
Regarding Claim 1, modified Bridgman teaches:
An electronic drive-through delivery system operating within a restaurant's land parcel to serve customers in vehicles (See Bridgman ¶ [0031-0032] - a quick-service restaurant premises having a lot on which is situated a restaurant building… equipped to service both drive-thru customers … who can order, pay for, and receive delivery of a food order without leaving their vehicles), the system comprising:
(a.) an electronic ordering system configured to receive and process customer orders (See Bridgman ¶ [0088] - Each of lane segments 322 a-d is equipped with an order station 328 a-d that performs the customer ordering and payment functions), the electronic ordering system comprising:
(i.) a plurality of electronic kiosks, each electronic kiosk comprising a screen and a processing unit, each processing unit running a client-side application configured to visually output an interface onto the screen of its kiosk (See Bridgman ¶ [0040] - order station having a display screen (not shown) for customer touch screen ordering. By touching various locations on the display screen, a customer can choose from items displayed on the screen to create a food order, [0086] - stations 302 a-d also provides self-ordering means, such as including a display screen to allow customer ordering by touch screen or keypad entries, [0088] - Each of lane segments 322 a-d is equipped with an order station 328 a-d [kiosk by example] that performs the customer ordering and payment functions previously described in connection with order stations 302 of FIG. 10);
(ii.) … communicatively connected to the plurality of electronic kiosks, … configured to receive customer orders placed via the kiosk interface (See Bridgman ¶ [0040] - Orders entered by a customer at an order station [kiosk by example] are communicated to one or more computers that are located within building. Such communication may take place by networking, hard wiring, wireless communication or any other suitable means), … further configured to process the orders for preparation and delivery of ordered items (See Bridgman ¶ [0044] - computer displays may be viewable by persons preparing the order… for use in servicing customers with a delayed order and [0046] - the pending orders, including any delayed orders, are viewable at the display screen of cash register);
(b.) a lane system established in the land parcel and configured to minimize a backup queue of customers and to eliminate a bottleneck of exiting customers (See Bridgman ¶ [0004-0008] – recognizing vehicles queued in a drive-thru system and the need for higher vehicle throughput and reduced delays [eliminating a bottleneck of existing customers by example] in order processing and Fig. 11 – the lane system), the lane system comprising:
(i.) a plurality of angled drive-through slots at which the plurality of electronic kiosks are positioned, each slot corresponding with one kiosk, the slots receiving customers in their vehicles (See Bridgman Fig. 11 – angled drive-thru lanes (322 a-d), order stations (328 a-d) with touch screens [electronic by example] at each lane, the lanes receiving customer vehicles (330 a-d));
(ii.) an entrance lane (See Bridgman Fig. 11 – entrance (350));
(iii.) an egress lane, the egress lane being accessible from the entrance lane via the angled drive-through slots, the drive-through slots being angled relative to the entrance and egress lanes (See Bridgman Fig. 11 – egress lanes (326 a-d), entrance (350) accessing egress lanes (326 a-d) via drive-thru lanes (322 a-d)); and,
wherein the ordered items are delivered by runners to the customers parked in the angled drive-through slots (See Bridgman ¶ [0087] - attendant A delivers the ready order to vehicle (304) waiting at order station (302a) as shown in Fig. 10).
While Bridgman teaches a drive-thru order processing system for multiple angled drive-thru lanes with computer controlled customer ordering terminals that receive input from said customers to enter orders and communicate said orders to a networked computer for order processing (Bridgman ¶ [0040], [0044] and [0046]), Bridgman does not explicitly teach that said networked computer is a central server that is …running a server-side order-processing application. This is taught by Cioarga (See Cioarga ¶ [0044] – The processing system may represent a computational platform [server-side order-processing application by example] that includes components that may be in a server or another computer system and [0086] - Upon receipt of payment, the Backend Co-ordination Engine transmits the received customer order to a back-end operation with instructions to fulfill the customer order). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include in the networked computer based drive-thru order processing system of Bridgman the use of a server as a networked computer as taught by Cioarga so that the occupants of several vehicles can be served at the same time (Cioarga ¶ [0003]), thereby increasing the efficiency of Bridgman networked computer based drive-thru order processing system.
Regarding Claim 2, modified Bridgman teaches:
The electronic drive-through delivery system of Claim 1, wherein the entrance and egress lanes run substantially parallel to each other, the angled drive-through slots being positioned between the entrance and egress lanes (See Bridgman Fig. 11 – egress lanes (326 a-d), entrance (350) accessing egress lanes (326 a-d) via drive-thru lanes (322 a-d)).
Regarding Claim 3, modified Bridgman teaches:
The electronic drive-through delivery system of Claim 2, wherein the lane system includes only one-way lanes (See Bridgman Fig. 11 – egress lanes (326 a-d), entrance (350) accessing egress lanes (326 a-d) via drive-thru lanes (322 a-d) comprising the lane system with one-way vehicle traffic flow as denoted by the directional arrows).
Regarding Claim 4, modified Bridgman teaches:
The electronic drive-through delivery system of Claim 3, wherein at least three customers can order and pay (See Bridgman Fig. 11 – angled drive-thru lanes (322 a-d), order stations (328 a-d) with touch screens [electronic by example] at each lane, the lanes receiving customer vehicles (330 a-d), thereby showing capacity for four customers to order and pay) …
While Bridgman teaches a drive-thru order processing system for multiple angled drive-thru lanes with computer controlled customer ordering terminals that receive input from said customers to enter orders and communicate said orders to a networked computer for order processing (Bridgman ¶ [0040], [0044] and [0046]), Bridgman does not explicitly teach that said orders are placed simultaneously. This is taught by Cioarga (See Cioarga ¶ [0037] – the visual interface system includes a plurality of functionally integrated hardware and software components to support automatic order taking and payment receipt from one or more customers in a drive-through environment… the visual interface system supports substantially simultaneous order-taking from a plurality of customers). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include in the networked computer based multiple drive-thru order processing system of Bridgman the use simultaneous order processing as taught by Cioarga so that the occupants of several vehicles can be served at the same time (Cioarga ¶ [0003]), thereby increasing the efficiency of Bridgman networked computer based drive-thru order processing system.
Regarding Claim 17, modified Bridgman teaches:
A method for using an electronic drive-through delivery system, the system serving a customer in a vehicle (See Bridgman ¶ [0031-0032] - a quick-service restaurant premises having a lot on which is situated a restaurant building… equipped to service both drive-thru customers … who can order, pay for, and receive delivery of a food order without leaving their vehicles), the method comprising:
(a.) Entering a restaurant's land parcel using an entrance lane (See Bridgman Fig. 11 – entrance (350));
(b.) Pulling into a drive-through slot that is angled relative to the entrance lane, a plurality of such drive-through slots being disposed adjacent to the entrance lane (See Bridgman Fig. 11 – angled drive-thru lanes (322 a-d), order stations (328 a-d) with touch screens [electronic by example] at each lane, the lanes receiving customer vehicles (330 a-d));
(c.) Placing an order using a kiosk while parked in the drive-through slot, the kiosk having a screen with menu items that are orderable via an interface provided by a client-side application running on the kiosk (See Bridgman ¶ [0040] - order station having a display screen (not shown) for customer touch screen ordering. By touching various locations on the display screen, a customer can choose from items displayed on the screen to create a food order, [0086] - stations 302 a-d also provides self-ordering means, such as including a display screen to allow customer ordering by touch screen or keypad entries, [0088] - Each of lane segments 322 a-d is equipped with an order station 328 a-d [kiosk by example] that performs the customer ordering and payment functions previously described in connection with order stations 302 of FIG. 10);
(d.) Paying for the order using the kiosk (See Bridgman ¶ [0088] - Each of lane segments 322 a-d is equipped with an order station 328 a-d that performs the customer ordering and payment functions);
(e.) Processing the order using … that is communicatively connected to the kiosk (See Bridgman ¶ [0040] - Orders entered by a customer at an order station [kiosk by example] are communicated to one or more computers that are located within building. Such communication may take place by networking, hard wiring, wireless communication or any other suitable means);
(f.) Preparing the order (See Bridgman ¶ [0044] - computer displays may be viewable by persons preparing the order… for use in servicing customers with a delayed order and [0046] - the pending orders, including any delayed orders, are viewable at the display screen of cash register);
(g.) Delivering the order to the customer parked in the drive-through slot, the order delivered by a runner (See Bridgman ¶ [0087] - attendant A delivers the ready order to vehicle (304) waiting at order station (302a) as shown in Fig. 10); and,
(h.) Exiting the restaurant's land parcel by pulling into an egress lane positioned adjacent to the drive-through slots, the drive-through slots being angled further relative to the egress lane (See Bridgman Fig. 11 – egress lanes (326 a-d), entrance (350) accessing egress lanes (326 a-d) via drive-thru lanes (322 a-d)).
While Bridgman teaches a drive-thru order processing system for multiple angled drive-thru lanes with computer controlled customer ordering terminals that receive input from said customers to enter orders and communicate said orders to a networked computer for order processing (Bridgman ¶ [0040], [0044] and [0046]), Bridgman does not explicitly teach that said networked computer comprises a server-side application running on a central server. This is taught by Cioarga (See Cioarga ¶ [0044] – The processing system may represent a computational platform [server-side order-processing application by example] that includes components that may be in a server or another computer system and [0086] - Upon receipt of payment, the Backend Co-ordination Engine transmits the received customer order to a back-end operation with instructions to fulfill the customer order). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include in the networked computer based drive-thru order processing system of Bridgman the use of a server as a networked computer as taught by Cioarga so that the occupants of several vehicles can be served at the same time (Cioarga ¶ [0003]), thereby increasing the efficiency of Bridgman networked computer based drive-thru order processing system.
Regarding Claim 18, modified Bridgman teaches:
The method of Claim 17, wherein at least three customers can order and pay (See Bridgman Fig. 11 – angled drive-thru lanes (322 a-d), order stations (328 a-d) with touch screens [electronic by example] at each lane, the lanes receiving customer vehicles (330 a-d), thereby showing capacity for four customers to order and pay)…, the delivery system being configured to minimize a backup queue of customers and to eliminate a bottleneck of exiting customers (See Bridgman ¶ [0004-0008] – recognizing vehicles queued in a drive-thru system and the need for higher vehicle throughput and reduced delays [eliminating a bottleneck of existing customers by example] in order processing and Fig. 11 – the lane system).
While Bridgman teaches a drive-thru order processing system for multiple angled drive-thru lanes with computer controlled customer ordering terminals that receive input from said customers to enter orders and communicate said orders to a networked computer for order processing (Bridgman ¶ [0040], [0044] and [0046]), Bridgman does not explicitly teach that said orders are placed simultaneously. This is taught by Cioarga (See Cioarga ¶ [0037] – the visual interface system includes a plurality of functionally integrated hardware and software components to support automatic order taking and payment receipt from one or more customers in a drive-through environment… the visual interface system supports substantially simultaneous order-taking from a plurality of customers). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include in the networked computer based multiple drive-thru order processing system of Bridgman the use simultaneous order processing as taught by Cioarga so that the occupants of several vehicles can be served at the same time (Cioarga ¶ [0003]), thereby increasing the efficiency of Bridgman networked computer based drive-thru order processing system.
Claims 5-16 and 19-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Bridgman et al. (US 2011/0139545 A1) in view of Cioarga et al. (US 2022/0382504 A1) and Johnson (US 2006/0218039 A1).
Regarding Claim 5, modified Bridgman teaches:
The electronic drive-through delivery system of Claim 4, wherein the angled drive- through slots (See claim 4 above) …
While Bridgman teaches a drive-thru order processing system for multiple angled drive-thru lanes with computer controlled customer ordering terminals that receive input from said customers to enter orders and communicate said orders to a networked computer for order processing (Bridgman ¶ [0040], [0044] and [0046]), Bridgman does not explicitly teach that said angled drive-thru lanes are covered by a canopy structure. This is taught by Johnson (See Johnson ¶ [0032] – Depending upon local climatic conditions, the order and staging station may be equipped with a canopy for weather protection of the order and staging station equipment and the customer vehicles while they are parked in order stalls). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include in the multiple drive-thru order processing system with angled drive-thru lanes of Bridgman the use of a canopy as taught by Johnson for weather protection of the order and staging station equipment and the customer vehicles while they are parked in order stalls to increase the convenience and security of payment transactions (Cioarga ¶ [0032] and [0039]), thereby increasing the efficiency of the Bridgman networked computer based drive-thru order processing system with angled drive-thru lanes.
Regarding Claim 6, modified Bridgman teaches:
The electronic drive-through delivery system of Claim 5, wherein the land parcel includes a plurality of standard parking spaces positioned adjacent to the entrance lane, the entrance lane positioned between the angled drive-through slots and the standard parking spaces (See Bridgman Fig. 10 – parking spaces (314 a-d) adjacent to angled order stations/ drive-thru slots (302 a-d and 308 a-d), wherein a vehicle must traverse lane (44) to travel between parking spaces (314 a-d) and order stations/ drive-thru slots (302 a-d and 308 a-d)).
Regarding Claim 7, modified Bridgman teaches:
The electronic drive-through delivery system of Claim 6, wherein the vehicle transitions from the entrance lane to an angled drive-through slot via a first obtusely angled turn, the customer having a line-of-sight to the entire egress lane when pulling out of the angled drive-through slot, the vehicle transitioning from the angled drive-through slot to the egress lane via a second obtusely angled turn, the first and second obtuse angles of the turns having substantially similar degree values (The specification and the drawings of the instant application do not disclose a particular obtuse angle relating to the obtusely angled turn of the angled drive-through slot, therefore see Bridgman Fig. 11 – egress lanes (326 a-d), entrance (350) accessing egress lanes (326 a-d) via angled drive-thru lanes (322 a-d) comprising the lane system with one-way vehicle traffic flow as denoted by the directional arrows that lead said vehicle traffic flow through obtuse turns while entering and exiting said angled drive-thru lanes (322 a-d)).
Regarding Claim 8, modified Bridgman teaches:
The electronic drive-through delivery system of Claim 7, wherein the lane system further comprises two intermediary lanes, each intermediary lane directly connecting the entrance and egress lanes to each other, the angled drive-through slots positioned between the intermediary lanes (See Bridgman Fig. 11 – intermediary lanes (20) and (22c)).
Regarding Claim 9, modified Bridgman teaches:
The electronic drive-through delivery system of Claim 8, wherein a point-of-sale (POS) system is communicatively connected to (See Bridgman ¶ [0040] - Orders entered by a customer at an order station are communicated to one or more computers … may take place by networking … at least one of these computers is a point-of-sale computerized cash register that is located in the drive-thru order delivery area) ...
While Bridgman teaches a drive-thru order processing system for multiple angled drive-thru lanes with computer controlled customer ordering terminals that receive input from said customers to enter orders and communicate said orders to a networked computer for order processing (Bridgman ¶ [0040], [0044] and [0046]), Bridgman does not explicitly teach that said networked computer is the central server. This is taught by Cioarga (See Cioarga ¶ [0044] – The processing system may represent a computational platform [server-side order-processing application by example] that includes components that may be in a server or another computer system). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include in the networked computer based drive-thru order processing system of Bridgman the use of a server as a networked computer as taught by Cioarga so that the occupants of several vehicles can be served at the same time (Cioarga ¶ [0003]), thereby increasing the efficiency of Bridgman networked computer based drive-thru order processing system.
Regarding Claim 10, modified Bridgman teaches:
A drive-through delivery system (See Bridgman ¶ [0031-0032] - a quick-service restaurant premises having a lot on which is situated a restaurant building… equipped to service both drive-thru customers … who can order, pay for, and receive delivery of a food order without leaving their vehicles) comprising:
(a.) a plurality of electronic kiosks configured to receive customer orders (See Bridgman ¶ [0040] - order station having a display screen (not shown) for customer touch screen ordering. By touching various locations on the display screen, a customer can choose from items displayed on the screen to create a food order, [0086] - stations 302 a-d also provides self-ordering means, such as including a display screen to allow customer ordering by touch screen or keypad entries, [0088] - Each of lane segments 322 a-d is equipped with an order station 328 a-d [kiosk by example] that performs the customer ordering and payment functions previously described in connection with order stations 302 of FIG. 10);
(b.) … that is communicatively connected to the plurality of electronic kiosks (See Bridgman ¶ [0040] - Orders entered by a customer at an order station [kiosk by example] are communicated to one or more computers that are located within building. Such communication may take place by networking, hard wiring, wireless communication or any other suitable means);
(c.) a plurality of angled drive-through slots, the angled drive-through slots receiving customers in their vehicles and configured to receive ordered items (See Bridgman Fig. 11 – angled drive-thru lanes (322 a-d), order stations (328 a-d) with touch screens [electronic by example] at each lane, the lanes receiving customer vehicles (330 a-d));
(d.) an entrance lane (See Bridgman Fig. 11 – entrance (350));
(e.) an egress lane, the drive-through slots being angled relative to the entrance and egress lanes (See Bridgman Fig. 11 – egress lanes (326 a-d), entrance (350) accessing egress lanes (326 a-d) via drive-thru lanes (322 a-d));
(f.) …, the angled drive-through slots (See Bridgman Fig. 11 – angled drive-thru lanes (322 a-d), order stations (328 a-d) with touch screens [electronic by example] at each lane, the lanes receiving customer vehicles (330 a-d))…; and
(g.) a plurality of standard parking spaces (See Bridgman Fig. 10 – parking spaces (314 a-d) adjacent to angled order stations/ drive-thru slots (302 a-d and 308 a-d)).
While Bridgman teaches a drive-thru order processing system for multiple angled drive-thru lanes with computer controlled customer ordering terminals that receive input from said customers to enter orders and communicate said orders to a networked computer for order processing (Bridgman ¶ [0040], [0044] and [0046]), Bridgman does not explicitly teach that said networked computer is a central order-processing server. This is taught by Cioarga (See Cioarga ¶ [0044] – The processing system may represent a computational platform [server-side order-processing application by example] that includes components that may be in a server or another computer system and [0086] - Upon receipt of payment, the Backend Co-ordination Engine transmits the received customer order to a back-end operation with instructions to fulfill the customer order). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include in the networked computer based drive-thru order processing system of Bridgman the use of a server as a networked computer as taught by Cioarga so that the occupants of several vehicles can be served at the same time (Cioarga ¶ [0003]), thereby increasing the efficiency of the Bridgman networked computer based drive-thru order processing system.
While Bridgman teaches a drive-thru order processing system for multiple angled drive-thru lanes with computer controlled customer ordering terminals that receive input from said customers to enter orders and communicate said orders to a networked computer for order processing (Bridgman ¶ [0040], [0044] and [0046]), Bridgman does not explicitly teach that said angled drive-thru lanes are covered by a canopy structure. This is taught by Johnson (See Johnson ¶ [0032] – Depending upon local climatic conditions, the order and staging station may be equipped with a canopy for weather protection of the order and staging station equipment and the customer vehicles while they are parked in order stalls). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include in the multiple drive-thru order processing system with angled drive-thru lanes of Bridgman the use of a canopy as taught by Johnson for weather protection of the order and staging station equipment and the customer vehicles while they are parked in order stalls to increase the convenience and security of payment transactions (Cioarga ¶ [0032] and [0039]), thereby increasing the efficiency of the Bridgman networked computer based drive-thru order processing system with angled drive-thru lanes.
Regarding Claim 11, modified Bridgman teaches:
The delivery system of Claim 10, wherein the lanes are one-way (See Bridgman Fig. 11 – egress lanes (326 a-d), entrance (350) accessing egress lanes (326 a-d) via drive-thru lanes (322 a-d) comprising the lane system with one-way vehicle traffic flow as denoted by the directional arrows), wherein the plurality of electronic kiosks are positioned at the angled drive-through slots (See Bridgman Fig. 11 – angled drive-thru lanes (322 a-d), order stations (328 a-d) with touch screens [electronic by example] at each lane, the lanes receiving customer vehicles (330 a-d)), the angled drive- through slots being positioned between the entrance and egress lanes, the egress lane being accessible from the entrance lane through the angled drive-through slots (See Bridgman Fig. 11 – egress lanes (326 a-d), entrance (350) accessing egress lanes (326 a-d) via drive-thru lanes (322 a-d)), and wherein the plurality of standard parking spaces lie adjacent to the entrance lane, the entrance lane being positioned between the angled drive-through slots and the standard parking spaces (See Bridgman Fig. 10 – parking spaces (314 a-d) adjacent to angled order stations/ drive-thru slots (302 a-d and 308 a-d), wherein a vehicle must traverse lane (44) to travel between parking spaces (314 a-d) and order stations/ drive-thru slots (302 a-d and 308 a-d)).
Regarding Claim 12, modified Bridgman teaches:
The delivery system of Claim 11, wherein at least three customers can order and pay (See Bridgman Fig. 11 – angled drive-thru lanes (322 a-d), order stations (328 a-d) with touch screens [electronic by example] at each lane, the lanes receiving customer vehicles (330 a-d), thereby showing capacity for four customers to order and pay) ...
While Bridgman teaches a drive-thru order processing system for multiple angled drive-thru lanes with computer controlled customer ordering terminals that receive input from said customers to enter orders and communicate said orders to a networked computer for order processing (Bridgman ¶ [0040], [0044] and [0046]), Bridgman does not explicitly teach that said orders are placed simultaneously. This is taught by Cioarga (See Cioarga ¶ [0037] – the visual interface system includes a plurality of functionally integrated hardware and software components to support automatic order taking and payment receipt from one or more customers in a drive-through environment… the visual interface system supports substantially simultaneous order-taking from a plurality of customers). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include in the networked computer based multiple drive-thru order processing system of Bridgman the use simultaneous order processing as taught by Cioarga so that the occupants of several vehicles can be served at the same time (Cioarga ¶ [0003]), thereby increasing the efficiency of Bridgman networked computer based drive-thru order processing system.
Regarding Claim 13, modified Bridgman teaches:
The delivery system of Claim 12, wherein each angled drive-through slot corresponds with one electronic kiosk (See Bridgman Fig. 11 – angled drive-thru lanes (322 a-d), order stations (328 a-d) with touch screens [electronic by example] at each lane, the lanes receiving customer vehicles (330 a-d)), each electronic kiosk comprising a screen and a processing unit, each processing unit running a client-side order-processing application configured to visually output an interface onto the screen of its kiosk (See Bridgman ¶ [0040] - order station having a display screen (not shown) for customer touch screen ordering. By touching various locations on the display screen, a customer can choose from items displayed on the screen to create a food order, [0086] - stations 302 a-d also provides self-ordering means, such as including a display screen to allow customer ordering by touch screen or keypad entries, [0088] - Each of lane segments 322 a-d is equipped with an order station 328 a-d [kiosk by example] that performs the customer ordering and payment functions previously described in connection with order stations 302 of FIG. 10), … configured to receive customer orders placed via the kiosk interface (See Bridgman ¶ [0040] - Orders entered by a customer at an order station [kiosk by example] are communicated to one or more computers that are located within building. Such communication may take place by networking, hard wiring, wireless communication or any other suitable means), … further configured to process the orders for preparation and delivery of ordered items (See Bridgman ¶ [0044] - computer displays may be viewable by persons preparing the order… for use in servicing customers with a delayed order and [0046] - the pending orders, including any delayed orders, are viewable at the display screen of cash register).
While Bridgman teaches a drive-thru order processing system for multiple angled drive-thru lanes with computer controlled customer ordering terminals that receive input from said customers to enter orders and communicate said orders to a networked computer for order processing (Bridgman ¶ [0040], [0044] and [0046]), Bridgman does not explicitly teach that said networked computer is a central server that is …running a server-side order-processing application. This is taught by Cioarga (See Cioarga ¶ [0044] – The processing system may represent a computational platform [server-side order-processing application by example] that includes components that may be in a server or another computer system and [0086] - Upon receipt of payment, the Backend Co-ordination Engine transmits the received customer order to a back-end operation with instructions to fulfill the customer order). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include in the networked computer based drive-thru order processing system of Bridgman the use of a server as a networked computer as taught by Cioarga so that the occupants of several vehicles can be served at the same time (Cioarga ¶ [0003]), thereby increasing the efficiency of Bridgman networked computer based drive-thru order processing system.
Regarding Claim 14, modified Bridgman teaches:
The delivery system of Claim 13, wherein the vehicle transitions from the entrance lane to an angled drive-through slot via a first obtusely angled turn, the customer having a line-of-sight to the entire egress lane when pulling out of the angled drive-through slot, the vehicle transitioning from the angled drive-through slot to the egress lane via a second obtusely angled turn, the first and second obtuse angles of the turns having substantially similar degree values (The specification and the drawings of the instant application do not disclose a particular obtuse angle relating to the obtusely angled turn of the angled drive-through slot, therefore see Bridgman Fig. 11 – egress lanes (326 a-d), entrance (350) accessing egress lanes (326 a-d) via angled drive-thru lanes (322 a-d) comprising the lane system with one-way vehicle traffic flow as denoted by the directional arrows that lead said vehicle traffic flow through obtuse turns while entering and exiting said angled drive-thru lanes (322 a-d)).
Regarding Claim 15, modified Bridgman teaches:
The delivery system of Claim 14, wherein the delivery system further comprises two intermediary lanes, each intermediary lane directly connecting the entrance and egress lanes to each other, the angled drive-through slots positioned between the intermediary lanes (See Bridgman Fig. 11 – intermediary lanes (20) and (22c)).
Regarding Claim 16, modified Bridgman teaches:
The delivery system of Claim 15, wherein a point-of-sale (POS) system is communicatively connected to (See Bridgman ¶ [0040] - Orders entered by a customer at an order station are communicated to one or more computers … may take place by networking … at least one of these computers is a point-of-sale computerized cash register that is located in the drive-thru order delivery area) ...
While Bridgman teaches a drive-thru order processing system for multiple angled drive-thru lanes with computer controlled customer ordering terminals that receive input from said customers to enter orders and communicate said orders to a networked computer for order processing (Bridgman ¶ [0040], [0044] and [0046]), Bridgman does not explicitly teach that said networked computer is the central server. This is taught by Cioarga (See Cioarga ¶ [0044] – The processing system may represent a computational platform [server-side order-processing application by example] that includes components that may be in a server or another computer system). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include in the networked computer based drive-thru order processing system of Bridgman the use of a server as a networked computer as taught by Cioarga so that the occupants of several vehicles can be served at the same time (Cioarga ¶ [0003]), thereby increasing the efficiency of Bridgman networked computer based drive-thru order processing system.
Regarding Claim 19, modified Bridgman teaches:
The method of Claim 18, wherein the angled drive-through slots (See claim 18 above) …
While Bridgman teaches a drive-thru order processing system for multiple angled drive-thru lanes with computer controlled customer ordering terminals that receive input from said customers to enter orders and communicate said orders to a networked computer for order processing (Bridgman ¶ [0040], [0044] and [0046]), Bridgman does not explicitly teach that said angled drive-thru lanes are covered by a canopy structure. This is taught by Johnson (See Johnson ¶ [0032] – Depending upon local climatic conditions, the order and staging station may be equipped with a canopy for weather protection of the order and staging station equipment and the customer vehicles while they are parked in order stalls). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include in the multiple drive-thru order processing system with angled drive-thru lanes of Bridgman the use of a canopy as taught by Johnson for weather protection of the order and staging station equipment and the customer vehicles while they are parked in order stalls to increase the convenience and security of payment transactions (Cioarga ¶ [0032] and [0039]), thereby increasing the efficiency of the Bridgman networked computer based drive-thru order processing system with angled drive-thru lanes.
Regarding Claim 20, modified Bridgman teaches:
The method of Claim 19, wherein the lanes and slots are one-way (See Bridgman Fig. 11 – egress lanes (326 a-d), entrance (350) accessing egress lanes (326 a-d) via drive-thru lanes (322 a-d) comprising the lane system with one-way vehicle traffic flow as denoted by the directional arrows), and wherein the vehicle transitions from the entrance lane into an angled drive-through slot via a first obtusely angled turn, the customer having a line-of-sight to the entire egress lane when pulling out of the angled drive-through slot, the vehicle transitioning from the angled drive-through slot to the egress lane via a second obtusely angled turn, the first and second obtuse angles of the turns having substantially similar degree values (The specification and the drawings of the instant application do not disclose a particular obtuse angle relating to the obtusely angled turn of the angled drive-through slot, therefore see Bridgman Fig. 11 – egress lanes (326 a-d), entrance (350) accessing egress lanes (326 a-d) via angled drive-thru lanes (322 a-d) comprising the lane system with one-way vehicle traffic flow as denoted by the directional arrows that lead said vehicle traffic flow through obtuse turns while entering and exiting said angled drive-thru lanes (322 a-d)).
Conclusion
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/MATTHEW S WERONSKI/Examiner, Art Unit 3627
/PETER LUDWIG/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3627