DETAILED ACTION
Response to Amendment
This is in response to Applicants amendment filed 07/08/2026 which has been entered. No Claims have been amended. Claims 1-20 have been cancelled. No Claims have been added. Claims 21-40 are still pending in this application, with Claims 21 and 31 being independent.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments, see Remarks, filed 07/08/2026, with respect to 35 U.S.C. 103 have been fully considered and are persuasive. The rejection of Claims 21-40 has been withdrawn.
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.
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Claims 21-40 are rejected on the grounds of nonstatutory double patenting as being unpatentable over Claims 21-40 of U.S. Patent No. 12,143,539; hereinafter referred to as Patent (‘539). Although the claims at issue are not identical, they are not patentably distinct from each other.
Claim 21 of the instant application mirrors Claim 21 of Patent (‘538) with the exception of the following: The step of receiving a request to transmit a phone-based communication to a destination device, wherein the destination device is associated with a first phone number in the instant application is recited as receiving a request to transmit a phone-based communication to a destination device, wherein the destination device is associated with a first phone number, wherein the request comprises a selection method identifier, and wherein the selection method identifier identifies a selection method of a plurality of selection methods available to be used to select routing data
Claim 22 of the instant application is a combination of elements taken from Claims 22 and 23 of Patent (‘538). The instant application recites a step of wherein analyzing the first phone number to determine the property of the first phone number comprises at least one of: determining the geographic region associated with the first phone number; or determining a prefix of the first phone number.
Claim 22 of Patent (‘538) recites wherein analyzing the first phone number to determine the property of the first phone number comprises determining the geographic region associated with the first phone number
Claim 23 of Patent (‘538) recites wherein analyzing the first phone number to determine the property of the first phone number comprises determining a prefix of the first phone number.
Claim 23 of the instant application mirrors Claim 25 of Patent (‘538).
Claim 24 of the instant application mirrors Claim 24 of Patent (‘538).
Claim 25 of the instant application is wholly contained in Claim 21 of Patent (‘538). Claim 25 of the instant application recites wherein the request comprises a selection method identifier, and wherein the selection method identifier identifies a selection method of a plurality of selection methods available to be used to select routing data. This is shown in the mapping of Claim 21 of Patent (‘538) shown above.
Claim 26 of the instant application mirrors Claim 26 of Patent (‘538).
Claim 27 of the instant application mirrors Claim 27 of Patent (‘538).
Claim 28 of the instant application mirrors Claim 28 of Patent (‘538).
Claim 29 of the instant application mirrors Claim 29 of Patent (‘538) with the exception of the following: The step of determining, based at least partly on the selection method identifier, the selection method from the plurality of selection methods available to be used to select routing data in the instant application is taken from Claim 21 of Patent (‘538).
Claim 30 of the instant application mirrors Claim 30 of Patent (‘538).
Claim 31 of the instant application mirrors Claim 31 of Patent (‘538) with the exception of the following: The step of receiving a request to transmit a phone-based communication to a destination device, wherein the destination device is associated with a first phone number in the instant application is recited as receiving a request to transmit a phone-based communication to a destination device, wherein the destination device is associated with a first phone number, wherein the request comprises a selection method identifier, and wherein the selection method identifier identifies a selection method of a plurality of selection methods available to be used to select routing data.
Claim 32 of the instant application is a combination of elements taken from Claims 32 and 33 of Patent (‘538). The instant application recites a step of wherein the executable instructions to analyze the first phone number to determine the property of the first phone number comprises at least one of: executable instructions to determine the geographic region associated with the first phone number; or executable instructions to determine a prefix of the first phone number.
Claim 32 of Patent (‘538) recites wherein the executable instructions to analyze the first phone number to determine the property of the first phone number comprises executable instructions to determine the geographic region associated with the first phone number.
Claim 33 of Patent (‘538) recites wherein the executable instructions to analyze the first phone number to determine the property of the first phone number comprises executable instructions to determine a prefix of the first phone number.
Claim 33 of the instant application mirrors Claim 34 of Patent (‘538).
Claim 34 of the instant application is wholly contained in Claim 31 of Patent (‘538). Claim 25 of the instant application recites wherein the request comprises a selection method identifier, and wherein the selection method identifier identifies a selection method of a plurality of selection methods available to be used to select routing data. This is shown in the mapping of Claim 31 of Patent (‘538) shown above.
Claim 35 of the instant application mirrors Claim 35 of Patent (‘538).
Claim 36 of the instant application mirrors Claim 36 of Patent (‘538).
Claim 37 of the instant application mirrors Claim 37 of Patent (‘538).
Claim 38 of the instant application mirrors Claim 38 of Patent (‘538).
Claim 39 of the instant application mirrors Claim 39 of Patent (‘538).
Claim 40 of the instant application mirrors Claim 40 of Patent (‘538).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 21-40 are found to contain allowable subject matter.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Handrigan et al (2020/0175545 A1), Ouimette et al (9,531,877 B1), Trinidad et al (8,280,022 B1), Goyal et al (9,338,289 B1), Chau et al (8,693,655 B1), Koster (10,182,034 B1), Tannenbaum et al (5,901,209), Varman et al (9,420,103 B1), Siminoff (2012/0189111 A1), Daly (2008/0198987 A1), Garcia (2004/0101123 A1) and Lang (2005/0084079 A1). Each of these references describes systems of conducting call center contact campaigns.
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KHARYE POPE
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 2693
/KHARYE POPE/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2693
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