DETAILED ACTION
Claims 1-20 are pending in this application. 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.
Regarding claims 1-20, under Step 1, the claims recite a process, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter. Under Step 2A claims 1-20 recite a judicial exception (abstract idea) that is not integrated into a practical application and does not provide significantly more.
Under Step 2A (prong 1), and taking claim 1 as representative, claim 1 recites: A computing system, the system comprising: one or more processors; and one or more non-transitory computer-readable media that collectively store instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the computing system to perform operations, the operations comprising: obtaining a first search query; processing the first search query to determine a plurality of first search results responsive to the first search query; providing the plurality of first search results for display within a search results interface; obtaining a text input and a selection of an image search result of the plurality of first search results, wherein the image search result is descriptive of a particular object comprising one or more particular details; generating a multi-modal prompt input, wherein the multi-modal prompt input comprises a prompt image and prompt text, wherein the prompt image is associated with the image search result, and wherein the prompt text is descriptive of a request to render the particular object without the one or more particular details; processing the prompt image and the prompt text with an image generation model to generate a model-generated image, wherein the image generation model comprises a machine-learned generative model, wherein the model-generated image is descriptive of a model-generated object, wherein the model-generated object is descriptive of the particular object without the one or more particular details; processing the model-generated image to determine one or more second search results; and providing the one or more second search results for display with the search results interface.
The above limitations set forth a procedure for organizing human activity, such as by managing personal behavior or relationships or interactions between people including filtering content. This is because the claim recites the steps performed in order to search for clothing, art, movies, and/or music (Specification ¶0003). Accordingly, under step 2A (prong 1) the claim recites an abstract idea because the claim recites limitations that fall within the “Certain methods of organizing human activity” grouping of abstract ideas. MPEP 2106.04.
Under Step 2A (prong 2), the abstract idea is not integrated into a practical application. Claim 1 recites additional elements, including one or more processors, one or more non-transitory computer-readable media, and a search results interface.
These additional elements are not sufficient to integrate the abstract idea into a practical application. This is because the additional elements of claim 1 are recited at a high level of generality (i.e. as generic computing hardware) such that they amount to nothing more than the mere instructions to implement or apply the abstract idea on generic computing hardware (or merely uses a computer as a tool to perform an abstract idea). Further, the additional elements do no more than generally link the use of a judicial exception to a particular technological environment or field of use (such as computers or computing networks).
Secondly, the additional elements are insufficient to integrate the abstract idea into a practical application because the claim fails to (i) reflect an improvement in the functioning of a computer, or an improvement to other technology or technical field, (ii) implement the judicial exception with, or use the judicial exception in conjunction with, a particular machine or manufacture that is integral to the claim, (iii) effect a transformation or reduction of a particular article to a different state or thing, or (iv) apply or use the judicial exception in some other meaningful way beyond generally linking the use of the judicial exception to a particular technological environment.
In view of the above, under Step 2A (prong 2), claim 1 does not integrate the recited exception into a practical application.
Under Step 2B, examiners should evaluate additional elements individually and in combination to determine whether they provide an inventive concept (i.e., whether the additional elements amount to significantly more than the exception itself). In this case, the claims do not include additional elements that are sufficient to amount to significantly more than the judicial exception.
Taken individually or as a whole the additional elements of claim 1 do not provide an inventive concept (i.e. they do not amount to “significantly more” than the exception itself). As discussed above with respect to the integration of the abstract idea into a practical application, the additional elements used to perform the claimed process amount to no more than the mere instructions to apply the exception using a generic computer and/or no more than a general link to a technological environment. MPEP 2106.05.
In view of the above, representative claim 1 does not provide an inventive concept (“significantly more”) under Step 2B, and is therefore ineligible for patenting.
Dependent claims 2-10 recite limitations which are similarly directed to and elaborate on the judicial exception (abstract idea) of claim 1. Thus, each of claims 2-10 are held to recite a judicial exception under Step 2A (prong 1) for at least similar reasons as discussed above.
Furthermore, claims 2-10 do not set forth further additional elements. Considered both individually and as a whole, claims 2-10 do not integrate the recited exception into a practical application for at least similar reasons as discussed above.
Lastly, under step 2B, dependent claims 2-10 do not provide an inventive concept (i.e. they do not amount to “significantly more” than the exception itself). This is again because the claims merely apply the exception on generic computing hardware, generally link the exception to a technological environment, and specified at a high level of generality.
Claims 11-20 are parallel, i.e. recite similar concepts and elements, to claims 1-10, analyzed above, and the same rationale is applied.
In view of the above, claims 1-20 do not provide an inventive concept (“significantly more”) under Step 2B, and are therefore ineligible for patenting.
Reasons for Allowability Over the Prior Art
The prior art includes Liu et al., US PG Pub 2006/0155684 which teaches systems and methods to present web image search results for effective image browsing but does not teach wherein the model generated object is descriptive of the particular object without the one or more particular details. Aley et al., US PG Pub 2016/0292148 A1, teaches a system and method for inputting images or labels into electronic devices including generating a relevance estimate for image features based on text including the presence or absence of words used in the text but does not teach wherein the model generated object is descriptive of the particular object without the one or more particular details.
The prior art also includes Giardina et al., US PG Pub 2021/0319070 A1, which teaches organization of database search results. Giardina teaches generating queries for multiple collections at once but does not teach wherein the model generated object is descriptive of the particular object without the one or more particular details. Kale et al., US PG Pub 2022/0121702 A1, teaches generating embeddings in a multimodal embedding space for cross-lingual digital image retrieval but does not cure the deficiencies noted above.
Non-patent literature Qiao, Han, Vivian Liu, and Lydia Chilton teaches using image prompts to improve subject representation in multimodal AI generated art but does not teach wherein the model-generated object is descriptive of the particular object without the one or more particular details. The Examiner further emphasizes the claims as a whole and hereby asserts that the totality of the evidence fails to set forth, either explicitly or implicitly, an appropriate rationale for further modification of the evidence at hand to arrive at the claimed invention. The combination of features as claimed would not have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art as combining various references from the totality of the evidence to reach the combination of features as claimed would require a substantial reconstruction of Applicant’s claimed invention relying on improper hindsight bias.
It is thereby asserted by the Examiner that, in light of the above and in further deliberation over all of the evidence at hand, that the claims are allowable as the evidence at hand does not anticipate the claims and does not render obvious any further modification of the references to a person of ordinary skill in the art.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to CHRISTOPHER B SEIBERT whose telephone number is (571)272-5549. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Thursday.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Jeff Smith can be reached on 571-272-6763. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/CHRISTOPHER B SEIBERT/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3625