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 .
Election/Restrictions
Restriction is required under 35 U.S.C. 121 and 372.
This application contains the following inventions or groups of inventions which are not so linked as to form a single general inventive concept under PCT Rule 13.1.
In accordance with 37 CFR 1.499, applicant is required, in reply to this action, to elect a single invention to which the claims must be restricted.
Group I, claim(s) 1-8, drawn to an item acquisition game device comprising a game field provided in a play space and having a first region in which an article to be acquired is placed and a second region serving as a movement destination of the article, an article holding unit that holds the article, an
operating unit that receives an operation from a player, a credit management unit that confers credits
according to a play fee paid by the player, a movement control unit that drives the article holding unit in
accordance with the operation, subject to the spending of credits, and a movement determination unit that determines whether the article moves to the second region successfully or not, wherein a credit transfer instruction is received from the player.
Group II, claim(s) 9, drawn to a game system comprising a plurality of game devices and a server, wherein: the game devices each include a credit management unit that confers credits according to a play fee paid by a player and a control unit that controls the playing of a game, subject to the spending of credits; and the server includes a player management unit that, after a transfer instruction for unspent credits at a first game device is received from the player, converts the unspent credits at the first game device to credits for a second game device.
The groups of inventions listed above do not relate to a single general inventive concept under PCT Rule 13.1 because, under PCT Rule 13.2, they lack the same or corresponding special technical features for the following reasons:
Groups I and II lack unity of invention because even though the inventions of these groups require the technical feature of a game system comprising a plurality of game devices and a server, wherein: the game devices each include a credit management unit that confers credits according to a play fee paid by a player and a control unit that controls the playing of a game, subject to the spending of credits; and the server includes a player management unit that, after a transfer instruction for unspent credits at a first game device is received from the player, converts the unspent credits at the first game device to credits for a second game device, this technical feature is not a special technical feature as it does not make a contribution over the prior art in view of JP 2020-130631. In paragraphs [0010]-[0052], [0061]-[0063], and [0088], it is indicated that a gaming value (corresponding to the "credits" in the claims of the present application) corresponding to a supplied gaming medium ("play fee paid by the player") is conferred, the game is played through spending of the gaming value, and processing is performed to convert an unspent gaming value for a first game ("first game device") to a gaming value for a second game ("second game device") according to a transfer instruction given by the player; and in paragraph [0082], it is indicated that such processing is performed by a server).
Therefore, this technical feature cannot be considered a special technical feature.
The invention in claim 1 and the invention in claim 9 do not have any other same or corresponding special technical features.
During a telephone conversation with Christina Stender on Wednesday, July 2, 2026 a provisional election was made without traverse to prosecute the invention of Group I, claims 1-8. Affirmation of this election must be made by applicant in replying to this Office action. Claim 9 withdrawn from further consideration by the examiner, 37 CFR 1.142(b), as being drawn to a non-elected invention.
Claim Objections
Claim 2 is objected to because of the following informalities:
In claim 2, line 2, "devices further" should read “devices further comprising"
In claim 2, line 3, "generates" should read "generating".
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
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.
Claim(s) 8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Fukazawa (JP 2019-201953 A) in view of Brown et al. (WO 2008/080191), hereafter referred to as Brown. Please note the paragraph and line numbers refer to the attached English translation PDF of Fukazawa.
Regarding claim 8, Fukazawa discloses an item acquisition game device (Figure 1, element 1), comprising:
a game field (Figure 1, element 4) that is disposed in a play space (Figure 1, element 3) and has a first area (Figure 1, element 4) and a second area (Figure 1, element 7), wherein items to be acquired are placed in the first area and moved to the second area (“prizes”, paragraph [0020], lines 4-6);
an item holder that holds one or more of the items (Figure 1, element 5);
an operation device that receives operations from a player (figure 1, element 10 and 11);
a data processing device (Figure 1, element 20) that:
gives credits depending on a play fee paid by the player (“first credit balance”, paragraph [0027], lines 4-5);
drives the item holder in response to the operations on condition that credits have been used (“The main board is electrically connected to the above-described crane”, paragraph [0026] line 5); wherein
the data processing device outputs (Paragraph [0030]), to an external device (Figure 1, element 100), information on at least one of unused credits and the play fee corresponding to the unused credits, in response to a credit transfer instruction received from the player (paragraph [0037], line 4-5).
However, Fukazawa does not disclose a data processing device that determines whether one or more of the items have been successfully moved to the second area. Brown teaches a sensor (paragraph [0127]) used to sense when a prize has entered the second area (the prize chute, element 30). Brown reveals that it is known in the art of game machines to provide a sensor to sense when a prize has entered a second area to monitor the prize inventory inside the machine. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the instantly claimed invention to modify the data processing unit of Fukazawa to with the sensor of Brown to monitor the item inventory inside the machine and to determine whether one or more of the items have been successfully moved to the second area.
Claim(s) 1 and 5 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Fukazawa (JP 2019-201953 A) in view of Brown et al. (WO 2008/080191) as applied to claim 8 above, and further in view of Okuaki et al. (JP 2020-130631), hereafter referred to as Okuaki. Please note the paragraph and line numbers refer to the attached English translation PDFs.
Regarding claim 1, Fukazawa discloses a game system comprising a plurality of item acquisition game devices (Figure 1, element 1), wherein each of the item acquisition game devices comprises:
a game field (Figure 1, element 4) that is disposed in a play space (Figure 1, element 3) and has a first area (Figure 1, element 4) and a second area (Figure 1, element 7), wherein items to be acquired are placed in the first area and moved to the second area (“prizes”, paragraph [0020], lines 4-6);
an item holder that holds one or more of the items (Figure 1, element 5);
an operation device that receives operations from a player (figure 1, element 10 and 11);
a data processing device (Figure 1, element 20) that:
gives credits depending on a play fee paid by the player (“first credit balance”, paragraph [0027], lines 4-5);
drives the item holder in response to the operations on condition that credits have been used (“The main board is electrically connected to the above-described crane”, paragraph [0026] line 5); and
However, Fukazawa does not disclose a data processing device that determines whether one or more of the items have been successfully moved to the second area. Brown teaches a sensor (paragraph [0127]) used to sense when a prize has entered the second area (the prize chute, element 30). Brown reveals that it is known in the art of game machines to provide a sensor to sense when a prize has entered a second area to monitor the prize inventory inside the machine. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the instantly claimed invention to modify the data processing unit of Fukazawa to with the sensor of Brown to monitor the item inventory inside the machine and to determine whether one or more of the items have been successfully moved to the second area.
Additionally, Fukazawa in view of Brown does not disclose a game system wherein the item acquisition game devices include a first item acquisition game device, and a second item acquisition game device that serves as a transfer destination. Fukazawa in view of Brown does not disclose a server comprising a data processing device that converts credits that are unused in the first item acquisition game device into credits for the second item acquisition game device, after receiving a transfer instruction for credits given in the first item acquisition game device from the player.
Furthermore, Okuaki teaches a game system (Figure 1, element 1A) comprising:
a plurality of game devices (Figure 1, element 30); and
a server (paragraph [0082], line 4), wherein
the game devices include a first game device (“first game”, paragraph [0007], line 3), and a second game device that serves as a transfer destination (“second game”, paragraph [0007], line 3), and
the server comprises:
a data processing device (Figure 2, element 410; Figure 13, element 61) that converts credits that are unused in the first item acquisition game device into credits for the second item acquisition game device (“transferring game value from one of the first game and the second game to the other”, paragraph [0096], line 2), after receiving a transfer instruction for credits given in the first item acquisition game device from the player (Figure 7, element Sa76).
Okuaki reveals that it is known in the art of game machines to provide a first game device and a second game device that serves as a transfer destination. Okuaki also reveals that it is known in the art of game machines to provide a server comprising a data processing device that converts credits that are unused in the first item acquisition game device into credits for the second item acquisition game device, after receiving a transfer instruction for credits given in the first item acquisition game device from the player. The combination of Fukazawa in view of Brown and Okuaki includes each element claimed, with the only difference between the claimed invention the prior art being the lack of actual combination of elements into a single prior art reference. It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the instantly claimed invention to have modified Fukazawa in view of Brown to incorporate the teachings of Okuaki to provide item acquisition game devices that include a first item acquisition game device, and a second item acquisition game device that serves as a transfer destination, allowing credits to be transferred from one of the Fukazawa device to the other. It would have also been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the instantly claimed invention to have modified Fukazawa in view of Brown to incorporate the teachings of Okuaki to provide a server comprising a data processing device that converts credits that are unused in the first item acquisition game device into credits for the second item acquisition game device, after receiving a transfer instruction from a user, therefore reducing the complexity of using credits at multiple game devices.
Regarding claim 5, Fukazawa in view of Brown and Okuaki teaches the game system according to claim 1, and Okuaki additionally teaches a system wherein the data processing device of the server converts the credits that are unused into the credits for the second item acquisition game device on condition that the second item acquisition game device is installed in a store same as a store in which the first item acquisition game device is installed. In paragraph [0061], line 10-11, Okuaki states “The second game device 52 is installed, for example, near each station 30 of the first game device 51”. Okuaki reveals that it is known in the art of game systems to provide a data processing device the converts credits for use with a second item acquisition game device, provided that the second acquisition game device is installed on the same premises as the first item acquisition game device. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the instantly claimed invention to modify the game system of Fukazawa in view of Brown and Okuaki with the teachings of Okuaki to provide a data processing device that converts credits for use with a second item acquisition game device, provided that the second acquisition game device is installed on the same premises as the first item acquisition game device to facilitate the transfer of unuse credits from one game device to another within the same facility.
Claim(s) 2 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Fukazawa (JP 2019-201953 A) in view of Brown et al. (WO 2008/080191), and further in view of Okuaki et al. (JP 2020-130631), as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Okabayashi et al. (JP 2020-151389), hereafter referred to as Okabayashi.
Regarding claim 2, Fukazawa in view of Brown and Okuaki teaches the game system according to claim 1, but does not teach the data processing device of each of the item acquisition game devices further comprising: generating a two-dimensional code by encoding a game machine ID of each of the item acquisition game devices, upon capturing an image of the two-dimensional code, the communication terminal transmits a player ID and the game machine ID to the server, and the data processing device of the server registers, as a pair, the player ID and the game machine ID to be associated with each other.
Furthermore, Okabayashi teaches a game system wherein the data processing device of each of the game devices further comprises: generating a two-dimensional code by encoding a game machine ID of each of the game devices (“two-dimensional code” paragraph [0058]-[0061]), upon capturing an image of the two-dimensional code, the communication terminal transmits a player ID and the game machine ID to the server (“player ID”, “game machine ID”, and “server”, paragraph [0061]), and the data processing device of the server registers, as a pair, the player ID and the game machine ID to be associated with each other (“linking the user ID included in the participation request with the game machine ID”, paragraph [0067], line 3-5). Okabayashi reveals that it is known in the art of game systems to provide the data processing device of each of the item acquisition game devices further comprising: generating a two-dimensional code by encoding a game machine ID of each of the item acquisition game devices, upon capturing an image of the two-dimensional code, the communication terminal transmits a player ID and the game machine ID to the server, and the data processing device of the server registers, as a pair, the player ID and the game machine ID to be associated with each other. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the instantly claimed invention to modify the game system of Fukazawa in view of Brown and Okuaki with the teachings of Okabayashi to provide a data processing device further comprising: generating a two-dimensional code by encoding a game machine ID of each of the item acquisition game devices, upon capturing an image of the two-dimensional code, the communication terminal transmits a player ID and the game machine ID to the server, and the data processing device of the server registers, as a pair, the player ID and the game machine ID to be associated with each other to assist the server in determining the game fee for each user based on the game result.
Claim(s) 4 and 6 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Fukazawa (JP 2019-201953 A) in view of Brown et al. (WO 2008/080191), and further in view of Okuaki et al. (JP 2020-130631), as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Okabayashi et al. (JP 2019-153117), hereafter referred to as Okabayashi.
Regarding claim 4, Fukazawa in view of Brown and Okuaki teaches the game system according to claim 1, but does not teach a game system wherein the data processing device of the server sets a time limit on a storage period for the credits that are unused for which the transfer instruction has been issued.
Furthermore, Okabayashi teaches a game system wherein the data processing device of the server sets a time limit on a storage period for the credits that are unused for which the transfer instruction has been issued (paragraph [0041] and [0049]). Okabayashi reveals that it is known in the art of game systems to provide a data processing device of the server that sets a time limit on a storage period for the credits that are unused for which the transfer instruction has been issued to encourage users to spend their unused credits before time runs out. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the instantly claimed invention to modify the game system of Fukazawa in view of Brown and Okuaki with the teachings of Okabayashi to provide a data processing device that sets a time limit on a storage period for the credits that are unused for which the transfer instruction has been issued to encourage users to spend their unused credits before time runs out.
Regarding claim 6, Fukazawa in view of Brown and Okuaki teaches the game system according to claim 1, but does not teach a game system wherein the data processing device of the server calculates the number of converted credits in the second item acquisition game device based on a play fee corresponding to the credits that are unused and a unit price of the credits in the second item acquisition game device.
Furthermore, Okabayashi teaches a game system wherein the data processing device of the server calculates the amount of an electronic value after conversion on the basis of a rate (paragraphs [0040], [0068], and [0069]). Okabayashi reveals that it is known in the art of game systems to provide data processing device that calculates the number of converted credits in the second item acquisition game device based on a play fee corresponding to the credits that are unused and a unit price of the credits in the second item acquisition game device. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the instantly claimed invention to modify the game system of Fukazawa in view of Brown and Okuaki with the teachings of Okabayashi to provide a data processing device that calculates the number of converted credits in the second item acquisition game device based on a play fee corresponding to the credits that are unused and a unit price of the credits in the second item acquisition game device to allow the system to accurately redistribute credits between game devices if different play fees.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 3 and 7 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
Claim 3 would be allowable for disclosing a data processing device of a server that receives the transfer instruction on condition that the player is registered as a pair with the first item acquisition game device. While data processing devices that receive transfer instructions exist in the prior art, as seen by Okabayashi et al. (JP 2020-151389), the level of specificity in the claimed condition is difficult to find. The prior art does not teach a data processing device receiving a transfer instruction on condition that the player is registered as a pair with the first item acquisition game device.
Claim 7 would be allowable for disclosing a game system wherein each of the item acquisition game devices further comprises: a display device that displays a transfer screen once one or more of the items are successfully transferred to the second area, and the data processing device of the server receives the transfer instruction on the transfer screen of the first item acquisition game device. While item acquisition game devices comprising a display device exist in the prior art. As seen by Watanabe et al. (US 2009/0078759), the level of specificity in the claimed condition is difficult to find. The prior art does not teach a display device that displays a transfer screen once one or more of the items are successfully transferred to the second area, and the data processing device of the server receives the transfer instruction on the transfer screen of the first item acquisition game device
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to KALYN G YOUNGER whose telephone number is (571)272-0733. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 8 AM-5 PM.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Nicholas Weiss can be reached at (571) 270-1775. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/K.G.Y./Examiner, Art Unit 3711
/NICHOLAS J. WEISS/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3711
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