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 .
Status of Claims
Claims 1-20 are pending in this application.
Double Patenting
The nonstatutory double patenting rejection is based on a judicially created doctrine grounded in public policy (a policy reflected in the statute) so as to prevent the unjustified or improper timewise extension of the “right to exclude” granted by a patent and to prevent possible harassment by multiple assignees. A nonstatutory double patenting rejection is appropriate where the conflicting claims are not identical, but at least one examined application claim is not patentably distinct from the reference claim(s) because the examined application claim is either anticipated by, or would have been obvious over, the reference claim(s). See, e.g., In re Berg, 140 F.3d 1428, 46 USPQ2d 1226 (Fed. Cir. 1998); In re Goodman, 11 F.3d 1046, 29 USPQ2d 2010 (Fed. Cir. 1993); In re Longi, 759 F.2d 887, 225 USPQ 645 (Fed. Cir. 1985); In re Van Ornum, 686 F.2d 937, 214 USPQ 761 (CCPA 1982); In re Vogel, 422 F.2d 438, 164 USPQ 619 (CCPA 1970); In re Thorington, 418 F.2d 528, 163 USPQ 644 (CCPA 1969).
A timely filed terminal disclaimer in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(c) or 1.321(d) may be used to overcome an actual or provisional rejection based on nonstatutory double patenting provided the reference application or patent either is shown to be commonly owned with the examined application, or claims an invention made as a result of activities undertaken within the scope of a joint research agreement. See MPEP § 717.02 for applications subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA as explained in MPEP § 2159. See MPEP § 2146 et seq. for applications not subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA . A terminal disclaimer must be signed in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(b).
The filing of a terminal disclaimer by itself is not a complete reply to a nonstatutory double patenting (NSDP) rejection. A complete reply requires that the terminal disclaimer be accompanied by a reply requesting reconsideration of the prior Office action. Even where the NSDP rejection is provisional the reply must be complete. See MPEP § 804, subsection I.B.1. For a reply to a non-final Office action, see 37 CFR 1.111(a). For a reply to final Office action, see 37 CFR 1.113(c). A request for reconsideration while not provided for in 37 CFR 1.113(c) may be filed after final for consideration. See MPEP §§ 706.07(e) and 714.13.
The USPTO Internet website contains terminal disclaimer forms which may be used. Please visit www.uspto.gov/patent/patents-forms. The actual filing date of the application in which the form is filed determines what form (e.g., PTO/SB/25, PTO/SB/26, PTO/AIA /25, or PTO/AIA /26) should be used. A web-based eTerminal Disclaimer may be filled out completely online using web-screens. An eTerminal Disclaimer that meets all requirements is auto-processed and approved immediately upon submission. For more information about eTerminal Disclaimers, refer to www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/applying-online/eterminal-disclaimer.
Claims 1-20 rejected on the ground of nonstatutory double patenting as being unpatentable over claims 1-20 of U.S. Patent No. 12,132,749. Although the claims at issue are not identical, they are not patentably distinct from each other(see table below).
Instant Application
U.S. Patent No. 12,132,749
Claim 1: A method comprising:
generating a first hash value based on an event record associated with a computing device of a computer system; storing the first hash value in a hash store; receiving, from a historian data store, a configuration log associated with the computing device; generating a second hash value based on the configuration log associated with the computing device; determining, based on a comparison between the first hash value and the second hash value, a security incident with respect to the computing device; and generating a security alert indicative of the security incident with respect to the computing device.
Claim 1: A networked computing system comprising: one or more processors; memory that stores program code executable by the one or more processors to cause the networked computer system to: update historic configuration data associated with a computing device based on received configuration data indicative of a change in configuration of the computing device in a computer system, the updated historic configuration data indicating changes to configurations of the computing device over a time period; determine, based on the updated historic configuration data, that a relationship between the computing device and an entity of the computer system has changed; in response to determining that the relationship between the computing device and the entity of the computer system has changed, provide the updated historic configuration data as input to a machine learning (ML) model configured to generate an indication of whether the updated historic configuration data evidences a security incident; and in response to the ML model generating an indication that the updated historic configuration data evidences a security incident, generate a security alert indicative of the evidenced security incident.
Although the conflicting claims are not identical, they are not patentably distinct from each other because both are directed to generating a security alert indicative of the security incident with respect to a historian data store and a configuration log associated with the computing device and is substantively-similar independent claims 8,16, said claims are merely a broader version of claim 1 of U.S. Patent No.12,132,749 contains at least all of the limitations (or obvious equivalents) recited in claim 1 of the instant application.
With regard to claims of the 2-7,9-15,16-20, each depending from one of independent claims 1,8 and 16, said claims are rejected on the grounds of nonstatutory double patenting as being unpatentable over U.S. Patent No. 12,132,749 in view the foregoing nonstatutory double patenting rejection of claim 1.
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 16-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 because the claims are directed to non-statutory subject matter.
The instant claims are drawn to a “computer-readable storage medium”, which in light of the disclosure, appears to encompass electronic signals. Examiner notes that, the term does not appear to have been defined in the specification as to explicitly excluding all forms of transitory media, and thus will be interpreted as to encompassing signals for the purposes of examination. Examiner respectfully suggests that the rejections can be overcome by amending the claims to recite a “non-transitory computer-readable storage medium”, or “medium” or “media” is replaced by “device or “memory” (computer usable memory , computer readable memory or computer readable device) or adding “wherein the medium is not a signal”, thus limiting the scope of the claims to statutory subject matter.
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/HOSUK SONG/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2435