DETAILED ACTION
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
The following is a non-final, first office action in response to the application filed 20 Sept 2024 and preliminary amendment of 20 Sept 2024.
The applicant's claim for benefit as 371 application of PCT JP 2022/014520 filed 3/25/2022, has been received and acknowledged.
Claims 1-12 are currently pending and have been examined.
Specification
The use of the term “Bluetooth (a registered trademark)” has been noted in this application. The term is a trade name or a mark used in commerce. The term should be accompanied by the generic terminology; furthermore the term should be capitalized wherever it appears or, where appropriate, include a proper symbol indicating use in commerce such as ™, SM , or ® following the term.
Although the use of trade names and marks used in commerce (i.e., trademarks, service marks, certification marks, and collective marks) are permissible in patent applications, the proprietary nature of the marks should be respected and every effort made to prevent their use in any manner which might adversely affect their validity as commercial marks. The recitation should be: BLUETOOTH® or BLUETOOTH™.
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 1-12 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 because the claimed invention is directed to non-statutory subject matter.
When considering subject matter eligibility under 35 U.S.C. 101, (1) it must be determined whether the claim is directed to one of the four statutory categories of invention, i.e., process, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter. If the claim does fall within one of the statutory categories, (2a) it must then be determined whether the claim is directed to a judicial exception (i.e., law of nature, natural phenomenon, and abstract idea), and if so (2b), it must additionally be determined whether the claim is a patent-eligible application of the exception. If an abstract idea is present in the claim, any element or combination of elements in the claim must be sufficient to ensure that the claim amounts to significantly more than the abstract idea itself. Examples of abstract ideas include fundamental economic practices; certain methods of organizing human activities; an idea itself; and mathematical relationships/formulas. Alice Corporation Pty. Ltd. v. CLS Bank International, et al., 573 U.S. ____ (2014).
The claimed invention is directed to a judicial exception (i.e. a law of nature, a natural phenomenon, or an abstract idea) without significantly more. In the instant case, the claim(s) as a whole, considering all claim elements both individually and in combination, do not amount to significantly more than an abstract idea.
(1) In the instant case, the claims are directed towards a methods, and the systems of credit issuance and product usage history. In the instant case, Claims 6-9 are directed to a process. Claims 1-4 and 5 and 11 are directed to a system/apparatus. Claims 10 and 12 are directed to a computer readable non-transitory medium.
(2a) Prong 1: Credit issuance and product usage history (i.e. data) is categorized in/akin to the abstract idea subject matter grouping of:, methods of organizing human activity [ fundamental economic concepts and organizing human activity (commercial or legal interactions (including agreements in the form of contracts; legal obligations; advertising, marketing or sales activities or behaviors; business relations)]. As such, the claims include an abstract idea.
The specific limitations of the invention are (a) identified to encompass the abstract idea include:
Claims 1 and 6
[Claim 1] (Currently Amended) A credit issuance system, comprising:
a product information transmission … which comprises:
at least a first … and
….:
… product information of a product .…
a product usage history transmission …which comprises:
at least a second …; and
….:
automatically comprises:
…; and
…,
…to perform:
verifying the product information of the product registered in the blockchain and the usage history of the product registered in the blockchain, via the network,
issuing a credit used for a carbon offset based on the verified usage history,
generating a certificate including the credit, and …the certificate to the blockchain,
wherein the blockchain comprises:
….
…. to perform:
generating a block when the blockchain receives the product information of the product, the usage history of the product, or the certificate, and
registering same in the blockchain.
[Claim 6] (Currently Amended) A credit issuance method, comprising:
… product information of a product …, by a product information transmission apparatus;
generating a block when the product information of the product is received and registering same in the blockchain, …;
automatically … a usage history of the product via the network to the blockchain, …;
generating a block when the usage history of the product is received and registering same in the blockchain, …
verifying the product information of the product registered in the blockchain and the usage history of the product registered in the blockchain,…,
issuing a credit used for a carbon offset based on the verified usage history,
generating a certificate including the credit, and …the certificate to the blockchain, …, and
generating a block when the certificate is received and registers same in the blockchain, ….
Claims 5 and 10
[Claim 5] (Currently Amended) A product usage history transmission … which comprises:
…..; and
a …,
….:
…usage history of a product to a blockchain via a network.
[Claim 10] (Currently Amended) A…. a program,
… of:
… a usage history of a product to blockchain via a network.
As stated above, this abstract idea falls into the (b) subject matter grouping of: methods of organizing human activity.
Prong 2: When considered individually and in combination, the instant claims are do not integrate the exception into a practical application because the steps of … generating… generating…verifying… issuing…generating… do not apply, rely on, or use the judicial exception in a manner that that imposes a meaningful limitation on the judicial exception (i.e. the abstract idea).
The instant recited claims including additional elements (i.e. transmitting… transmitting…transmitting…transmitting… ) do not improve the functioning of the computer or improve another technology or technical field nor do they recite meaningful limitations beyond generally linking the use of an abstract idea to a particular technological environment. The limitations merely recite: “apply it” (or an equivalent) or merely include instructions to implement an abstract idea on a computer or merely uses a computer as a tool to perform an abstract idea or merely add insignificant extra-solution activity to the judicial exception. (See MPEP 2106.05 (f) and (g))
(2b) In the instant case, Claims 6-9 are directed to a process. Claims 1-4 and 5 and 11 are directed to a system/apparatus. Claims 10 and 12 are directed to a computer readable non-transitory medium.
Additionally, the claims (independent and dependent) do not include additional elements that individually or in combination are sufficient to amount to significantly more than the judicial exception of abstract idea (i.e. provide an inventive concept). As discussed above with respect to integration of the abstract idea into a practical application, the additional element(s) of: ( recording… computer-readable non-transitory recording medium, program, program instructions, computer, transmission apparatus, blockchain, network, memory, processor ) merely uses a computer as a tool to perform an abstract idea or merely add insignificant extra-solution activity to the judicial exception or merely uses generic computing elements to perform well known, routine, and conventional functions. (See MPEP 2106.05 (d), (f) and (g)) (Specification, 10 blockchain such as Bitcoin… [20] computer readable medium, storage medium; [32] blockchain… [48] hardware such as an integrated circuit… [57-59] computer, CPU, memory, RAM, ROM,)
The dependent claims have also been examined and do not correct the deficiencies of the independent claims.
It is noted that claim 2-4, 7-9, 11-12 introduces the additional elements wherein clauses further describing elements product information (Claims 2 and 7); usage history (Claims 3 and 8, 11 and 12); the certificate (Claims 4 and 9); . This element is not a practical application of the judicial exception because the limitations merely recite: “apply it” (or an equivalent) or merely include instructions to implement an abstract idea on a computer or merely uses a computer as a tool to perform an abstract idea or merely add insignificant extra-solution activity to the judicial exception (See MPEP 2106.05 (f) and (g)) Further these limitations taken alone or in combination with the abstract do not amount to significantly more than the abstract idea alone because these elements amount to mere use of a computer as a tool to perform an abstract idea or merely add insignificant extra-solution activity to the judicial exception or merely uses generic computing elements to perform well known, routine, and conventional functions. (See MPEP 2106.05 (d), (f) and (g)) (Specification, 10 blockchain such as Bitcoin… [20] computer readable medium, storage medium; [32] blockchain… [48] hardware such as an integrated circuit… [57-59] computer, CPU, memory, RAM, ROM,)
Therefore, claims 1-12 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 as being directed to non-statutory subject matter.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 1-12 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102 (a)(2) as being anticipated by US 20210117981 A1, Tian et al. hereinafter referred to as Tian.
Claims 1 and 6
Tian further discloses:
transmitting product information of a product via a network to a blockchain, by a product information transmission apparatus; ( See at least Tian, Fig. 1, 2, 3A, 3B [19-27] first object…second object…blockchain…Claim 1… )
generating a block when the product information of the product is received and registering same in the blockchain, by the blockchain; ( See at least Tian, Fig. 1, 2, 3A, 3B [19-27] first object…second object…blockchain …Claim 1…)
automatically transmitting a usage history of the product via the network to the blockchain, by a product usage history transmission apparatus; ( See at least Tian, Fig. 1, 2, 3A, 3B [19-27] first object…second object…blockchain…carbon behaviors of objects obtained at step 102……Claim 1… )
generating a block when the usage history of the product is received and registering same in the blockchain, by the blockchain; ( See at least Tian, Fig. 1, 2, 3A, 3B [19-27] first object…second object…blockchain…carbon behaviors of objects obtained at step 102……Claim 1… )
verifying the product information of the product registered in the blockchain and the usage history of the product registered in the blockchain, via the network, issuing a credit used for a carbon offset based on the verified usage history, generating a certificate including the credit, and ( See at least Tian, Fig. 1, 2, 3A, 3B [19-28] first object…second object…blockchain…carbon behaviors of objects obtained at step 102… carbon behaviors converted to … carbon data…[39] …certificated on the block chain platform…[44] raw data…hashed data… [51] … carbon asset… carbon credit or carbon coin……Claim 1…)
transmitting the certificate to the blockchain, by a credit issuance apparatus, and ( See at least Tian, Fig. 1, 2, 3A, 3B [19-28] first object…second object…blockchain…carbon behaviors of objects obtained at step 102… carbon behaviors converted to … carbon data…[39] …certificated on the block chain platform… [51] … carbon asset… carbon credit or carbon coin……Claim 1…)
generating a block when the certificate is received and registers same in the blockchain, by the block chain. ( See at least Tian, Fig. 1, 2, 3A, 3B [19-28] first object…second object…blockchain…carbon behaviors of objects obtained at step 102… carbon behaviors converted to … carbon data…[39] …certificated on the block chain platform… [51] … carbon asset… carbon credit or carbon coin……Claim 1…)
Claims 2 and 7
Tian discloses the invention as claimed above in Claims 1 and 6.
Tian further discloses:
wherein the product information includes a specification related to emission reduction of green gas of the product, a serial number of the product, and information of an owner of the product. ( See at least Tian, Fig. 1, 2, 3A, 3B [30-34]conversion…baseline emission… project emission.. [35-37] hash operation…unique identification number of the object… block chain ….frame number or license plate number… user’s resident identification card number or mobile phone number or it’s hashed value…Claim 1…reads on serial number/owner of product… )
Claims 3 and 8
Tian discloses the invention as claimed above in Claims 1 and 6.
Tian further discloses:
wherein the usage history of the product includes a product use time and a serial number of the product. ( See at least Tian, Fig. 1, 2, 3A, 3B [30-34] usage amount of the emission source… conversion…baseline emission… project emission.. [35-37] hash operation…unique identification number of the object… block chain ….frame number or license plate number… user’s resident identification card number or mobile phone number or its hashed value…Claim 1…Claim 46……reads on serial number)
Claims 4 and 9
Tian discloses the invention as claimed above in Claims 1 and 6.
Tian further discloses:
wherein the certificate includes the credit, a serial number of the product, and a hash value thereof. ( See at least Tian, Fig. 1, 2, 3A, 3B [30-34] usage amount of the emission source…conversion…baseline emission… project emission.. . [35-37] hash operation…unique identification number of the object… block chain ….frame number or license plate number… user’s resident identification card number or mobile phone number or its hashed value… [51] … carbon asset… carbon credit or carbon coin……Claim 1……reads on serial number …)
Claims 5 and 10
Tian discloses processor and memory a computer-readable non-transitory recording medium recording a program, ( See at least Tian, Fig. 1, 2, 3A, 3B)
wherein the program
transmitting a usage history of a product to blockchain via a network. ( See at least Tian, Fig. 1, 2, 3A, 3B [19-27] first object…second object…blockchain…carbon behaviors of objects obtained at step 102……Claim 1… )
Claims 11 and 12
Tian discloses the invention as claimed above in Claims 5 and 10.
Tian further discloses:
wherein the usage history of the product includes a product use time and a serial number of the product. ( See at least Tian, Fig. 1, 2, 3A, 3B [30-34] usage amount of the emission source… conversion…baseline emission… project emission.. [35-37] hash operation…unique identification number of the object… block chain ….frame number or license plate number… user’s resident identification card number or mobile phone number or its hashed value…Claim 1…Claim 46……reads on serial number)
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
US 20220327538 A1-SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR COLLECTING
AND STORING ENVIRONMENTAL DATA IN A DIGITAL TRUST MODEL AND FOR DETERMINING
US 2021/0334895 Al -SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR COLLECTING AND STORING ENVIRONMENTAL DATA IN A DIGITAL TRUST MODEL, AND PROCESSING THE DATA USING AN ACCOUNTING INFRASTRUCTURE
US 2022/0101430 Al - BLOCKCHAIN-BASED CARBON CREDIT DATABASE
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/ASHA PUTTAIA H/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3691