DETAILED ACTION
Claims 1-20 have been examined.
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 .
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.
Priority
The current application is a Continuation of 17465747, filed 09/02/2021, now U.S. Patent No. 12,200,131 which claims priority from Provisional Application 63073585, filed 09/02/2020.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 08/01/2025 has been considered by the examiner.
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, 9, and 16 of the current application, hereinafter “548”, are rejected on the ground of nonstatutory double patenting as being unpatentable over claims 1 and 10 of U.S. Patent No. US 12200131 B1, hereinafter “131”. Although the claims at issue are not identical, they are not patentably distinct from each other because both “548” and “131” have limitations pertaining to obtaining biometric data of a wearer, as well as a “hardware private key” associated with the wearable device and a “biometric-based private key” associated with the user, with encryption occurring using those keys. Also, both “548” and “131” have limitations pertaining to outputting “encrypted data” as a result of “identifying that the user is the authorized user”.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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.
Claims 1-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over United States Patent No. US 9197414 B1 to Martin et al., hereinafter Martin, and further in view of United States Patent Application Publication No. US 20180324177 A1 to Wang, hereinafter Wang.
Regarding claim 1, Martin teaches a method at a wearable device, comprising: acquiring, using the wearable device, biometric data associated with a user of the wearable device (column 6, lines 39 and 40, “biometric sensor data may be captured using the mobile device”, and column 14, lines 60-66, “biometric device 400 that is arranged as a wearable wristband/bracelet. In at least one of the various embodiments, wristband 402 may be arranged to include various hardware components, sensors, and software for capturing biometric signals from its wearer; communication with an access point; authentication of a wearer, or the like”),
wherein the wearable device is associated with a hardware key (column 23, lines 14-23, “The private key needed to compute ODRM is stored in a secure hardware element in the mobile device”);
encrypting data to generate encrypted data using the processor of the wearable device and in response to determining that the user is the authorized user, wherein the encrypted data is generated using at least the hardware key and a biometric-based private key that is generated based at least in part on biometric data of the user (column 5, lines 49-53, column 6, lines 29-38, column 19, lines 61-67, column 20, lines 5-11, column 23, lines 14-23, and column 26, lines 38-52);
wherein the encrypted data is configured to cause the access control device to perform a tangible action (column 32, lines 35-44, “each time a mobile device, such as, as a biometric device, is provisioned with an access point, it may store an identifier and provisioning key pair that corresponds to the access point. In some cases, one provisioning key may be associated with more than one physical access point. For example, if a user authorized to access several of the same kind of access points in a building (e.g., secured doors), the mobile device may be arranged to store one provisioning key that is associated with the multiple access points.”, and column 36, lines 22-30, “In at least one of the various embodiments, the actions taken by the access point may depend on the type of access point. For example, if the access point is a door, it may automatically, unlock or open to let a user pass. If the access point is a computer terminal it may login the user associated with the mobile device. Note, the association between the user and mobile devices may be established when the mobile device was provisioned and/or paired with the access point.”).
Martin teaches the claimed invention, as cited above. However, Martin is not relied upon to teach the claim limitations pertaining to “identifying, using a processor of the wearable device, that the user is an authorized user based at least in part on the biometric data acquired via the wearable device” and “outputting, using a communications device of the wearable device, the encrypted data to an access control device in response to identifying that the user is the authorized user”. Wang teaches these claim limitations, as cited below.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the teachings of Wang with the teachings of Martin so that “Various aspects of functionality of wearable devices 12 may be inhibited unless the verified status is set. This provides protection against wearable devices 12 being stolen or getting into the wrong hands since wearable devices 12 could be rendered useless to anyone other than the authorized user.” (Wang – paragraph 127).
Further regarding claim 1, Wang teaches identifying, using a processor of the wearable device, that the user is an authorized user based at least in part on the biometric data acquired via the wearable device (paragraph 82, “Wearable device 12 may be configured to take additional biometric readings, images, or recordings while in “disconnected mode” to readily upload once connectivity is regained. In this way, if something happens when wearable device 12 is in “disconnected mode”, the relevant authorities would have a greater amount of information to work with. In the event that the wearable device 12 is stolen, this can be re-verify the authenticity of the registered user so that anyone stealing the wearable device 12 would be not be able to use or sell it.”, paragraph 171, “Server 100 may be notified if the motion sensors 32b sense movement of wearable device 12 during the registration process that could indicate that the user removed wearable device 12 at some point between capturing a facial image of the user wearing the wearable device 12 and acquiring biometric information from the user. This check ensures that the user does not remove wearable device 12 during the entire period between the capturing of the facial image(s) and the acquiring of biometric information. If server 100 is notified that the user has moved or removed wearable device 12 during the registration process, this may cause the registration process to fail or to require a restart.”, and paragraph 172, “To further prevent falsification, a second check may be provided”);
and outputting, using a communications device of the wearable device, the encrypted data to an access control device in response to identifying that the user is the authorized user (paragraph 193, “Passwords and/or encryption credentials for accessing the additional computing device(s) may be stored in wearable device 12 or uploaded to his/her own online account in an encrypted format and made available when wearable device 12 is in its verified state. After wearable device 12 has established communications with additional computing device(s), the user may control and operate the additional computing device(s) remotely by issuing commands into the registered wearable device 12.”).
Martin teaches the claimed invention, as cited above. However, Martin is not relied upon to teach the claim limitations pertaining to “receiving a request to authenticate the user from the access control device, wherein acquiring the biometric data, identifying that the user is the authorized user, encrypting the data, and outputting the encrypted data are based at least in part on receiving the request”. Wang teaches said claim limitations, as cited below.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the teachings of Wang with the teachings of Martin so that “Various aspects of functionality of wearable devices 12 may be inhibited unless the verified status is set. This provides protection against wearable devices 12 being stolen or getting into the wrong hands since wearable devices 12 could be rendered useless to anyone other than the authorized user.” (Wang – paragraph 127).
Regarding claim 2, Wang teaches receiving a request to authenticate the user from the access control device, wherein acquiring the biometric data, identifying that the user is the authorized user, encrypting the data, and outputting the encrypted data are based at least in part on receiving the request (paragraph 173, “Upon receipt of the facial image, server 100 compares the displayed code captured in the facial image to verify that the code captured and visible in the facial image is the correct code that was generated for the registration of the particular wearable device 12.”, paragraph 176, “Next, the server 100 transmits the user's information (as inputted by user), facial image(s), and biometric information to one or more authorized trusted institutions 106 for verification. This is to check the user's self-recorded information, facial image(s), and biometric information against information contained in the authorized trusted databases 108 maintained by the authorized trusted institutions 106.”, paragraph 177, “In such embodiments, one or more authorized trusted institutions 106 transmit to server 100 one or more facial image(s) of the particular user, upon request by server 100. The facial recognition engine maps the facial image captured earlier with the certified facial image(s) sent by the authorized trusted institution 106 to verify the user's identity.”, and paragraph 180, “The registration process is complete (and thus the user is authenticated) if all of the information received in monitoring device 60 match the certified information that are stored in authorized trusted institution 106. The personal and biometric information of the user are thus associated with the particular wearable device 12.”).
Regarding claim 3, Martin teaches, wherein the biometric data comprises movement data associated with one or more gestures performed by the user, wherein identifying that the user is the authorized user is based at least in part on the one or more gestures (column 31, lines 1-3, “movements and/or gestures”, and column 33, lines 6-9, “a value representing one or more gestures performed by the wearer of the mobile device”).
Regarding claim 4, Martin teaches wherein the tangible action comprises activating an electronic latch, opening a gate, opening or unlocking a door, activating a control panel, activating a vehicle, or any combination thereof (column 32, lines 35-44, “each time a mobile device, such as, as a biometric device, is provisioned with an access point, it may store an identifier and provisioning key pair that corresponds to the access point. In some cases, one provisioning key may be associated with more than one physical access point. For example, if a user authorized to access several of the same kind of access points in a building (e.g., secured doors), the mobile device may be arranged to store one provisioning key that is associated with the multiple access points.”, and column 36, lines 22-30, “In at least one of the various embodiments, the actions taken by the access point may depend on the type of access point. For example, if the access point is a door, it may automatically, unlock or open to let a user pass. If the access point is a computer terminal it may login the user associated with the mobile device. Note, the association between the user and mobile devices may be established when the mobile device was provisioned and/or paired with the access point.”).
Regarding claim 5, Martin teaches wherein the tangible action comprises running a program on the access control device, logging the user into the access control device, enabling a financial transaction to be entered by the access control device, or any combination thereof (column 36, lines 22-30, “In at least one of the various embodiments, the actions taken by the access point may depend on the type of access point. For example, if the access point is a door, it may automatically, unlock or open to let a user pass. If the access point is a computer terminal it may login the user associated with the mobile device. Note, the association between the user and mobile devices may be established when the mobile device was provisioned and/or paired with the access point.”).
Regarding claim 6, Martin teaches wherein the hardware key comprises a hardware private key, a hardware public key, or both (Figure 7, column 19, lines 61-67, column 20, lines 5-11, column 21, lines 17-23, and column 23, lines 14-23).
Martin teaches the claimed invention, as cited above. However, Martin is not relied upon to teach the claim limitations to “wherein acquiring the biometric data, identifying that the user is the authorized user, encrypting the data, and outputting the encrypted data are performed in accordance with a periodic re-authentication interval”. Wang teaches said claim limitations, as cited below. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the teachings of Wang with the teachings of Martin so that “Various aspects of functionality of wearable devices 12 may be inhibited unless the verified status is set. This provides protection against wearable devices 12 being stolen or getting into the wrong hands since wearable devices 12 could be rendered useless to anyone other than the authorized user.” (Wang – paragraph 127).
Regarding claim 7, Wang teaches wherein acquiring the biometric data, identifying that the user is the authorized user, encrypting the data, and outputting the encrypted data are performed in accordance with a periodic re-authentication interval (paragraph 173, “Upon receipt of the facial image, server 100 compares the displayed code captured in the facial image to verify that the code captured and visible in the facial image is the correct code that was generated for the registration of the particular wearable device 12.”, paragraph 176, “Next, the server 100 transmits the user's information (as inputted by user), facial image(s), and biometric information to one or more authorized trusted institutions 106 for verification. This is to check the user's self-recorded information, facial image(s), and biometric information against information contained in the authorized trusted databases 108 maintained by the authorized trusted institutions 106.”, paragraph 177, “In such embodiments, one or more authorized trusted institutions 106 transmit to server 100 one or more facial image(s) of the particular user, upon request by server 100. The facial recognition engine maps the facial image captured earlier with the certified facial image(s) sent by the authorized trusted institution 106 to verify the user's identity.”, and paragraph 180, “The registration process is complete (and thus the user is authenticated) if all of the information received in monitoring device 60 match the certified information that are stored in authorized trusted institution 106. The personal and biometric information of the user are thus associated with the particular wearable device 12.”).
Regarding claim 8, Martin teaches wherein the encrypted data, the additional encrypted data, or both, is configured to cause the access control device to perform the tangible action, an additional tangible action, or both (column 32, lines 35-44, “each time a mobile device, such as, as a biometric device, is provisioned with an access point, it may store an identifier and provisioning key pair that corresponds to the access point. In some cases, one provisioning key may be associated with more than one physical access point. For example, if a user authorized to access several of the same kind of access points in a building (e.g., secured doors), the mobile device may be arranged to store one provisioning key that is associated with the multiple access points.”, and column 36, lines 22-30, “In at least one of the various embodiments, the actions taken by the access point may depend on the type of access point. For example, if the access point is a door, it may automatically, unlock or open to let a user pass. If the access point is a computer terminal it may login the user associated with the mobile device. Note, the association between the user and mobile devices may be established when the mobile device was provisioned and/or paired with the access point.”).
Martin teaches the claimed invention, as cited above. However, Martin is not relied upon to teach the claim limitations pertaining to “identifying, at a second time, that the user is still the authorized user based at least in part on determining that the wearable device has not been removed from the user between the first time and the second time; and outputting the encrypted data, additional encrypted data, or both, to the access control device in response to identifying that the user is still the authorized user”. Wang teaches said claim limitations, as cited below.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the teachings of Wang with the teachings of Martin so that “Various aspects of functionality of wearable devices 12 may be inhibited unless the verified status is set. This provides protection against wearable devices 12 being stolen or getting into the wrong hands since wearable devices 12 could be rendered useless to anyone other than the authorized user.” (Wang – paragraph 127).
Further regarding claim 8, Wang teaches wherein the encrypted data is output at a first time, the method further comprising: identifying, at a second time, that the user is still the authorized user based at least in part on determining that the wearable device has not been removed from the user between the first time and the second time (paragraph 82, “Wearable device 12 may be configured to take additional biometric readings, images, or recordings while in “disconnected mode” to readily upload once connectivity is regained. In this way, if something happens when wearable device 12 is in “disconnected mode”, the relevant authorities would have a greater amount of information to work with. In the event that the wearable device 12 is stolen, this can be re-verify the authenticity of the registered user so that anyone stealing the wearable device 12 would be not be able to use or sell it.”, paragraph 171, “Server 100 may be notified if the motion sensors 32b sense movement of wearable device 12 during the registration process that could indicate that the user removed wearable device 12 at some point between capturing a facial image of the user wearing the wearable device 12 and acquiring biometric information from the user. This check ensures that the user does not remove wearable device 12 during the entire period between the capturing of the facial image(s) and the acquiring of biometric information. If server 100 is notified that the user has moved or removed wearable device 12 during the registration process, this may cause the registration process to fail or to require a restart.”, and paragraph 172, “To further prevent falsification, a second check may be provided”);
and outputting the encrypted data, additional encrypted data, or both, to the access control device in response to identifying that the user is still the authorized user (paragraph 193, “Passwords and/or encryption credentials for accessing the additional computing device(s) may be stored in wearable device 12 or uploaded to his/her own online account in an encrypted format and made available when wearable device 12 is in its verified state. After wearable device 12 has established communications with additional computing device(s), the user may control and operate the additional computing device(s) remotely by issuing commands into the registered wearable device 12.”).
Regarding claim 9, Martin teaches a method for a control system at an access control device, comprising:
transmitting, to a wearable device using a communication component of the access control device, a signal comprising a request to authenticate a user associated with the wearable device (column 6, lines 39 and 40, “biometric sensor data may be captured using the mobile device”, and column 14, lines 60-66, “biometric device 400 that is arranged as a wearable wristband/bracelet. In at least one of the various embodiments, wristband 402 may be arranged to include various hardware components, sensors, and software for capturing biometric signals from its wearer; communication with an access point; authentication of a wearer, or the like”);
and generating a second signal configured to cause the access control device, a peripheral device associated with the access control device, or both, to perform a tangible action based at least in part on identifying that the user is an authorized user (column 32, lines 35-44, “each time a mobile device, such as, as a biometric device, is provisioned with an access point, it may store an identifier and provisioning key pair that corresponds to the access point. In some cases, one provisioning key may be associated with more than one physical access point. For example, if a user authorized to access several of the same kind of access points in a building (e.g., secured doors), the mobile device may be arranged to store one provisioning key that is associated with the multiple access points.”, and column 36, lines 22-30, “In at least one of the various embodiments, the actions taken by the access point may depend on the type of access point. For example, if the access point is a door, it may automatically, unlock or open to let a user pass. If the access point is a computer terminal it may login the user associated with the mobile device. Note, the association between the user and mobile devices may be established when the mobile device was provisioned and/or paired with the access point.”).
Martin teaches the claimed invention, as cited above. However, Martin is not relied upon to teach the claim limitations pertaining to “identifying, using a processor of the access control device, that the user is an authorized user based at least in part on the hardware key and the biometric-based private key” and “receiving, from the wearable device in response to the signal, encrypted data that is generated based at least in part on a hardware key associated with the wearable device and a biometric-based private key that is generated based on biometric data acquired from the user via the wearable device”. Wang teaches said claim limitation, as cited below.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the teachings of Wang with the teachings of Martin so that “Various aspects of functionality of wearable devices 12 may be inhibited unless the verified status is set. This provides protection against wearable devices 12 being stolen or getting into the wrong hands since wearable devices 12 could be rendered useless to anyone other than the authorized user.” (Wang – paragraph 127).
Further regarding claim 9, Wang teaches identifying, using a processor of the access control device, that the user is an authorized user based at least in part on the hardware key and the biometric-based private key (paragraph 82, “Wearable device 12 may be configured to take additional biometric readings, images, or recordings while in “disconnected mode” to readily upload once connectivity is regained. In this way, if something happens when wearable device 12 is in “disconnected mode”, the relevant authorities would have a greater amount of information to work with. In the event that the wearable device 12 is stolen, this can be re-verify the authenticity of the registered user so that anyone stealing the wearable device 12 would be not be able to use or sell it.”, paragraph 171, “Server 100 may be notified if the motion sensors 32b sense movement of wearable device 12 during the registration process that could indicate that the user removed wearable device 12 at some point between capturing a facial image of the user wearing the wearable device 12 and acquiring biometric information from the user. This check ensures that the user does not remove wearable device 12 during the entire period between the capturing of the facial image(s) and the acquiring of biometric information. If server 100 is notified that the user has moved or removed wearable device 12 during the registration process, this may cause the registration process to fail or to require a restart.”, and paragraph 172, “To further prevent falsification, a second check may be provided”);
receiving, from the wearable device in response to the signal, encrypted data that is generated based at least in part on a hardware key associated with the wearable device and a biometric-based private key that is generated based on biometric data acquired from the user via the wearable device (paragraph 173, “Upon receipt of the facial image, server 100 compares the displayed code captured in the facial image to verify that the code captured and visible in the facial image is the correct code that was generated for the registration of the particular wearable device 12.”, paragraph 176, “Next, the server 100 transmits the user's information (as inputted by user), facial image(s), and biometric information to one or more authorized trusted institutions 106 for verification. This is to check the user's self-recorded information, facial image(s), and biometric information against information contained in the authorized trusted databases 108 maintained by the authorized trusted institutions 106.”, paragraph 177, “In such embodiments, one or more authorized trusted institutions 106 transmit to server 100 one or more facial image(s) of the particular user, upon request by server 100. The facial recognition engine maps the facial image captured earlier with the certified facial image(s) sent by the authorized trusted institution 106 to verify the user's identity.”, paragraph 180, “The registration process is complete (and thus the user is authenticated) if all of the information received in monitoring device 60 match the certified information that are stored in authorized trusted institution 106. The personal and biometric information of the user are thus associated with the particular wearable device 12.”, and paragraph 193).
Regarding claim 10, Martin teaches wherein the biometric data comprises movement data associated with one or more gestures performed by the user, wherein identifying that the user is the authorized user is based at least in part on the one or more gestures (column 31, lines 1-3, “movements and/or gestures”, and column 33, lines 6-9, “a value representing one or more gestures performed by the wearer of the mobile device”).
Regarding claim 11, Martin teaches wherein the tangible action comprises activating an electronic latch, opening a gate, opening or unlocking a door, activating a control panel, activating a vehicle, or any combination thereof (column 32, lines 35-44, “each time a mobile device, such as, as a biometric device, is provisioned with an access point, it may store an identifier and provisioning key pair that corresponds to the access point. In some cases, one provisioning key may be associated with more than one physical access point. For example, if a user authorized to access several of the same kind of access points in a building (e.g., secured doors), the mobile device may be arranged to store one provisioning key that is associated with the multiple access points.”, and column 36, lines 22-30, “In at least one of the various embodiments, the actions taken by the access point may depend on the type of access point. For example, if the access point is a door, it may automatically, unlock or open to let a user pass. If the access point is a computer terminal it may login the user associated with the mobile device. Note, the association between the user and mobile devices may be established when the mobile device was provisioned and/or paired with the access point.”).
Regarding claim 12, Martin teaches wherein the tangible action comprises running a program on the access control device, logging the user into the access control device, enabling a financial transaction to be entered by the access control device, or any combination thereof (column 36, lines 22-30, “In at least one of the various embodiments, the actions taken by the access point may depend on the type of access point. For example, if the access point is a door, it may automatically, unlock or open to let a user pass. If the access point is a computer terminal it may login the user associated with the mobile device. Note, the association between the user and mobile devices may be established when the mobile device was provisioned and/or paired with the access point.”).
Martin teaches the claimed invention, as cited above. However, Martin is not relied upon to teach the claim limitations pertaining to “transmitting the encrypted data to a remote authentication server; and receiving a message from the remote authentication server in response to transmitting the encrypted data, wherein identifying that the user is the authorized user is based at least in part on receiving the message”. Wang teaches the claim limitations, as cited below.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the teachings of Wang with the teachings of Martin so that “Various aspects of functionality of wearable devices 12 may be inhibited unless the verified status is set. This provides protection against wearable devices 12 being stolen or getting into the wrong hands since wearable devices 12 could be rendered useless to anyone other than the authorized user.” (Wang – paragraph 127).
Regarding claim 13, Wang teaches transmitting the encrypted data to a remote authentication server; and receiving a message from the remote authentication server in response to transmitting the encrypted data, wherein identifying that the user is the authorized user is based at least in part on receiving the message (paragraph 171, “Server 100 may be notified if the motion sensors 32b sense movement of wearable device 12 during the registration process that could indicate that the user removed wearable device 12 at some point between capturing a facial image of the user wearing the wearable device 12 and acquiring biometric information from the user. This check ensures that the user does not remove wearable device 12 during the entire period between the capturing of the facial image(s) and the acquiring of biometric information. If server 100 is notified that the user has moved or removed wearable device 12 during the registration process, this may cause the registration process to fail or to require a restart.”, paragraph 172, “To further prevent falsification, a second check may be provided”, and paragraph 193).
Regarding claim 14, Martin teaches wherein the hardware key comprises a hardware private key, a hardware public key, or both (Figure 7, column 19, lines 61-67, column 20, lines 5-11, column 21, lines 17-23, and column 23, lines 14-23).
Martin teaches the claimed invention, as cited above. However, Martin is not relied upon to teach the claim limitations pertaining to “wherein transmitting the signal, receiving the encrypted data, or both, are performed in accordance with a periodic re-authentication interval”. Wang teaches the claim limitations, as cited below.
Regarding claim 15, Wang teaches wherein transmitting the signal, receiving the encrypted data, or both, are performed in accordance with a periodic re-authentication interval (paragraph 173, “Upon receipt of the facial image, server 100 compares the displayed code captured in the facial image to verify that the code captured and visible in the facial image is the correct code that was generated for the registration of the particular wearable device 12.”, paragraph 176, “Next, the server 100 transmits the user's information (as inputted by user), facial image(s), and biometric information to one or more authorized trusted institutions 106 for verification. This is to check the user's self-recorded information, facial image(s), and biometric information against information contained in the authorized trusted databases 108 maintained by the authorized trusted institutions 106.”, paragraph 177, “In such embodiments, one or more authorized trusted institutions 106 transmit to server 100 one or more facial image(s) of the particular user, upon request by server 100. The facial recognition engine maps the facial image captured earlier with the certified facial image(s) sent by the authorized trusted institution 106 to verify the user's identity.”, and paragraph 180, “The registration process is complete (and thus the user is authenticated) if all of the information received in monitoring device 60 match the certified information that are stored in authorized trusted institution 106. The personal and biometric information of the user are thus associated with the particular wearable device 12.”).
Regarding claim 16, Martin discloses a wearable device, comprising:
a biometric acquisition device configured to acquire biometric data associated with a user of the wearable device, wherein the wearable device is associated with a hardware key (column 6, lines 39 and 40, “biometric sensor data may be captured using the mobile device”, and column 14, lines 60-66, “biometric device 400 that is arranged as a wearable wristband/bracelet. In at least one of the various embodiments, wristband 402 may be arranged to include various hardware components, sensors, and software for capturing biometric signals from its wearer; communication with an access point; authentication of a wearer, or the like”);
a communications device (column 14, lines 60-66, “biometric device 400 that is arranged as a wearable wristband/bracelet. In at least one of the various embodiments, wristband 402 may be arranged to include various hardware components, sensors, and software for capturing biometric signals from its wearer; communication with an access point; authentication of a wearer, or the like”, and column 21, lines 3-23);
and one or more processors communicatively coupled with the biometric acquisition device and the communications device, the one or more processors configured to (column 16, lines 29-34, “CPU”):
encrypt data to generate encrypted data in response to determining that the user is the authorized user, wherein the encrypted data is generated using at least the hardware key and a biometric-based private key that is generated based at least in part on biometric data of the user (column 5, lines 49-53, column 6, lines 29-38, column 19, lines 61-67, column 20, lines 5-11, column 23, lines 14-23, and column 26, lines 38-52);
wherein the encrypted data is configured to cause the access control device to perform a tangible action (column 32, lines 35-44, “each time a mobile device, such as, as a biometric device, is provisioned with an access point, it may store an identifier and provisioning key pair that corresponds to the access point. In some cases, one provisioning key may be associated with more than one physical access point. For example, if a user authorized to access several of the same kind of access points in a building (e.g., secured doors), the mobile device may be arranged to store one provisioning key that is associated with the multiple access points.”, and column 36, lines 22-30, “In at least one of the various embodiments, the actions taken by the access point may depend on the type of access point. For example, if the access point is a door, it may automatically, unlock or open to let a user pass. If the access point is a computer terminal it may login the user associated with the mobile device. Note, the association between the user and mobile devices may be established when the mobile device was provisioned and/or paired with the access point.”).
Martin discloses the claimed invention, as cited above. However, Martin is not relied upon to disclose the claim limitations pertaining to “identify that the user is an authorized user based at least in part on the biometric data acquired via the biometric acquisition device” and “output, using the communications device, the encrypted data to an access control device in response to identifying that the user is the authorized user”. Wang discloses said claim limitations, as cited below.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the teachings of Wang with the teachings of Martin so that “Various aspects of functionality of wearable devices 12 may be inhibited unless the verified status is set. This provides protection against wearable devices 12 being stolen or getting into the wrong hands since wearable devices 12 could be rendered useless to anyone other than the authorized user.” (Wang – paragraph 127).
Further regarding claim 16, Wang discloses identify that the user is an authorized user based at least in part on the biometric data acquired via the biometric acquisition device (paragraph 82, “Wearable device 12 may be configured to take additional biometric readings, images, or recordings while in “disconnected mode” to readily upload once connectivity is regained. In this way, if something happens when wearable device 12 is in “disconnected mode”, the relevant authorities would have a greater amount of information to work with. In the event that the wearable device 12 is stolen, this can be re-verify the authenticity of the registered user so that anyone stealing the wearable device 12 would be not be able to use or sell it.”, paragraph 171, “Server 100 may be notified if the motion sensors 32b sense movement of wearable device 12 during the registration process that could indicate that the user removed wearable device 12 at some point between capturing a facial image of the user wearing the wearable device 12 and acquiring biometric information from the user. This check ensures that the user does not remove wearable device 12 during the entire period between the capturing of the facial image(s) and the acquiring of biometric information. If server 100 is notified that the user has moved or removed wearable device 12 during the registration process, this may cause the registration process to fail or to require a restart.”, and paragraph 172, “To further prevent falsification, a second check may be provided”);
and output, using the communications device, the encrypted data to an access control device in response to identifying that the user is the authorized user (paragraph 193, “Passwords and/or encryption credentials for accessing the additional computing device(s) may be stored in wearable device 12 or uploaded to his/her own online account in an encrypted format and made available when wearable device 12 is in its verified state. After wearable device 12 has established communications with additional computing device(s), the user may control and operate the additional computing device(s) remotely by issuing commands into the registered wearable device 12.”).
Martin discloses the claimed invention, as cited above. However, Martin is not relied upon to teach the claim limitations pertaining to “wherein the one or more processors are configured to: receive, via the communications device, a request to authenticate the user from the access control device, wherein identifying that the user is the authorized user, encrypting the data, and outputting the encrypted data are based at least in part on receiving the request”. Wang teaches said claim limitations, as cited below.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the teachings of Wang with the teachings of Martin so that “Various aspects of functionality of wearable devices 12 may be inhibited unless the verified status is set. This provides protection against wearable devices 12 being stolen or getting into the wrong hands since wearable devices 12 could be rendered useless to anyone other than the authorized user.” (Wang – paragraph 127).
Regarding claim 17, Wang discloses wherein the one or more processors are configured to: receive, via the communications device, a request to authenticate the user from the access control device, wherein identifying that the user is the authorized user, encrypting the data, and outputting the encrypted data are based at least in part on receiving the request (paragraph 173, “Upon receipt of the facial image, server 100 compares the displayed code captured in the facial image to verify that the code captured and visible in the facial image is the correct code that was generated for the registration of the particular wearable device 12.”, paragraph 176, “Next, the server 100 transmits the user's information (as inputted by user), facial image(s), and biometric information to one or more authorized trusted institutions 106 for verification. This is to check the user's self-recorded information, facial image(s), and biometric information against information contained in the authorized trusted databases 108 maintained by the authorized trusted institutions 106.”, paragraph 177, “In such embodiments, one or more authorized trusted institutions 106 transmit to server 100 one or more facial image(s) of the particular user, upon request by server 100. The facial recognition engine maps the facial image captured earlier with the certified facial image(s) sent by the authorized trusted institution 106 to verify the user's identity.”, and paragraph 180, “The registration process is complete (and thus the user is authenticated) if all of the information received in monitoring device 60 match the certified information that are stored in authorized trusted institution 106. The personal and biometric information of the user are thus associated with the particular wearable device 12.”).
Regarding claim 18, Martin discloses wherein the biometric data comprises movement data associated with one or more gestures performed by the user, wherein identifying that the user is the authorized user is based at least in part on the one or more gestures (column 31, lines 1-3, “movements and/or gestures”, and column 33, lines 6-9, “a value representing one or more gestures performed by the wearer of the mobile device”).
Martin discloses the claimed invention, as cited above. However, Martin is not relied upon to disclose the claim limitations pertaining to “wherein acquiring the biometric data, identifying that the user is the authorized user, encrypting the data, and outputting the encrypted data are performed in accordance with a periodic re-authentication interval”. Wang discloses said claim limitations, as cited below.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the teachings of Wang with the teachings of Martin so that “Various aspects of functionality of wearable devices 12 may be inhibited unless the verified status is set. This provides protection against wearable devices 12 being stolen or getting into the wrong hands since wearable devices 12 could be rendered useless to anyone other than the authorized user.” (Wang – paragraph 127).
Regarding claim 19, Wang discloses wherein acquiring the biometric data, identifying that the user is the authorized user, encrypting the data, and outputting the encrypted data are performed in accordance with a periodic re-authentication interval (paragraph 173, “Upon receipt of the facial image, server 100 compares the displayed code captured in the facial image to verify that the code captured and visible in the facial image is the correct code that was generated for the registration of the particular wearable device 12.”, paragraph 176, “Next, the server 100 transmits the user's information (as inputted by user), facial image(s), and biometric information to one or more authorized trusted institutions 106 for verification. This is to check the user's self-recorded information, facial image(s), and biometric information against information contained in the authorized trusted databases 108 maintained by the authorized trusted institutions 106.”, paragraph 177, “In such embodiments, one or more authorized trusted institutions 106 transmit to server 100 one or more facial image(s) of the particular user, upon request by server 100. The facial recognition engine maps the facial image captured earlier with the certified facial image(s) sent by the authorized trusted institution 106 to verify the user's identity.”, and paragraph 180, “The registration process is complete (and thus the user is authenticated) if all of the information received in monitoring device 60 match the certified information that are stored in authorized trusted institution 106. The personal and biometric information of the user are thus associated with the particular wearable device 12.”).
Regarding claim 20, Martin discloses wherein the encrypted data, the additional encrypted data, or both, is configured to cause the access control device to perform the tangible action, an additional tangible action, or both (column 32, lines 35-44, “each time a mobile device, such as, as a biometric device, is provisioned with an access point, it may store an identifier and provisioning key pair that corresponds to the access point. In some cases, one provisioning key may be associated with more than one physical access point. For example, if a user authorized to access several of the same kind of access points in a building (e.g., secured doors), the mobile device may be arranged to store one provisioning key that is associated with the multiple access points.”, and column 36, lines 22-30, “In at least one of the various embodiments, the actions taken by the access point may depend on the type of access point. For example, if the access point is a door, it may automatically, unlock or open to let a user pass. If the access point is a computer terminal it may login the user associated with the mobile device. Note, the association between the user and mobile devices may be established when the mobile device was provisioned and/or paired with the access point.”).
Martin discloses the claimed invention, as cited above. However, Martin is not relied upon to disclose the claim limitations pertaining to “wherein the encrypted data is output at a first time, wherein the one or more processors are configured to: identify, at a second time, that the user is still the authorized user based at least in part on determining that the wearable device has not been removed from the user between the first time and the second time” and “output the encrypted data, additional encrypted data, or both, to the access control device in response to identifying that the user is still the authorized user”. Wang discloses said claim limitations, as cited below.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the teachings of Wang with the teachings of Martin so that “Various aspects of functionality of wearable devices 12 may be inhibited unless the verified status is set. This provides protection against wearable devices 12 being stolen or getting into the wrong hands since wearable devices 12 could be rendered useless to anyone other than the authorized user.” (Wang – paragraph 127).
Further regarding claim 20, Wang discloses wherein the one or more processors are configured to: identify, at a second time, that the user is still the authorized user based at least in part on determining that the wearable device has not been removed from the user between the first time and the second time (paragraph 82, “Wearable device 12 may be configured to take additional biometric readings, images, or recordings while in “disconnected mode” to readily upload once connectivity is regained. In this way, if something happens when wearable device 12 is in “disconnected mode”, the relevant authorities would have a greater amount of information to work with. In the event that the wearable device 12 is stolen, this can be re-verify the authenticity of the registered user so that anyone stealing the wearable device 12 would be not be able to use or sell it.”, paragraph 171, “Server 100 may be notified if the motion sensors 32b sense movement of wearable device 12 during the registration process that could indicate that the user removed wearable device 12 at some point between capturing a facial image of the user wearing the wearable device 12 and acquiring biometric information from the user. This check ensures that the user does not remove wearable device 12 during the entire period between the capturing of the facial image(s) and the acquiring of biometric information. If server 100 is notified that the user has moved or removed wearable device 12 during the registration process, this may cause the registration process to fail or to require a restart.”, and paragraph 172, “To further prevent falsification, a second check may be provided”);
and output the encrypted data, additional encrypted data, or both, to the access control device in response to identifying that the user is still the authorized user,
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. The references cited on form PTO-892 are cited to further show the state of the art with respect to utilizing biometric authentication and access control via wearable devices.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JEREMIAH L AVERY whose telephone number is (571)272-8627. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8:30am -5:00pm.
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, Lynn Feild can be reached at 571-272-2092. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/JEREMIAH L AVERY/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2431