DETAILED ACTION
1. This communication is responsive to the Preliminary Amendment filed 7/17/2025.
Claims 1-20 have been cancelled. Claims 21-40 have been added.
Claims 21-40 are presented for examination.
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
2. The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Claim Objections
3. Claims 21-40 are objected to because of the following informalities: claims 21 and 33 recite “determine that that a committed….”; “that” has been typed twice. Appropriate correction is required.
Double Patenting
4. 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.
5. Claims 21-40 are rejected on the ground of nonstatutory obviousness-type double patenting as being unpatentable over claims 1-20 of U.S. Patent No. 12,242,463. Although the conflicting claims are not identical, they are not patentably distinct from each other.
U.S. Patent Application 18/973,146
Claim 21
A system, comprising:
one or more processors with associated memory that implement a transactional database system, configured to:
manage transactions for a database, wherein the database is stored in a file system as plurality of data objects, wherein individual data objects are files in the file system that store table data associated with respective tables of the database and individual tables of the database are stored under respective table directories in the file system;
initiate a first transaction that accesses a plurality of data items in the database, including to create a first copy of one or more first data objects to be accessed by the first transaction, wherein updates in the first transaction are performed on the first copy;
determine that that a committed state of the one or more first data objects has not changed since the initiation of the first transaction, and in response:
commit the first transaction, including to update one or more metadata objects in the file system to refer to the first copy as the committed state of the one or more first data objects; and
initiate a second transaction that accesses the database, including to create a second copy of one or more second data objects to be accessed by the second transaction;
determine that a committed state of the one or more second data objects has changed since the initiation of the second transaction, and in response:
roll back the second transaction, including to abandon the second copy of the one or more second data objects so that the second copy is not referred to as the committed state of the one or more second data objects; and
execute an asynchronous garbage collection process to remove copies of data objects that have been abandoned due to rollbacks, including the second copy of one or more second data objects.
U.S. Patent No. 12,242,463
Claim 1
A system, comprising:
one or more processors with associated memory that implement a transactional database system, configured to:
manage transactions for a database, wherein the database is stored in a file system as plurality of data objects, wherein individual data objects are files that store table data associated with respective tables of the database, and individual tables of the database are stored under respective table directories in the file system;
initiate a transaction that accesses a plurality of data items in the database, including to: determine one or more of the data objects that are to be accessed by the transaction; and
create a copy of the one or more data objects in the file system, wherein updates in the transaction are performed on the copy; and
commit the transaction, including to:
verify that a committed state of the one or more data objects has not changed since the initiation of the transaction;
update one or more metadata objects in the file system to refer to the copy as the committed state of the one or more data objects; and
generate a message indicating that the transaction has been committed.
Claim 2
The system of claim 1, wherein the transactional database system is configured to: initiate a second transaction on the database;
create a copy of a data object in the file system for use by the second transaction; determine that a committed state of the data object has changed since the initiation of the second transaction;
abandon the copy of the data object so that the copy is not referred to as the committed state of the data object; and
generate a message indicating that the second transaction has failed.
It is noted that the claimed limitations of claims 21-40 of Patent Application 18/973,146 are not patentably distinct from that of claims 1-20 of U.S. Patent No. 12,242,463. It appears to be proper to apply the judicially created doctrine of obvious-type double patenting to the claims at issue.
Allowable Subject Matter
6. Claims 21-40 would become allowable if the obvious-type double patenting rejection is overcome. As noted above, this rejection can be overturned by filing a terminal disclaimer.
Claims 21 and 33 would be considered allowable since the prior art of record fails to disclose each and every element of the Applicant’s claimed invention. Specifically, the prior art of record fails to teach and/or suggest “initiate a first transaction that accesses a plurality of data items in the database, including to create a first copy of one or more first data objects to be accessed by the first transaction, wherein updates in the first transaction are performed on the first copy;
determine that that a committed state of the one or more first data objects has not changed since the initiation of the first transaction, and in response:
commit the first transaction, including to update one or more metadata objects in the file system to refer to the first copy as the committed state of the one or more first data objects; and
initiate a second transaction that accesses the database, including to create a second copy of one or more second data objects to be accessed by the second transaction;
determine that a committed state of the one or more second data objects has changed since the initiation of the second transaction, and in response:
roll back the second transaction, including to abandon the second copy of the one or more second data objects so that the second copy is not referred to as the committed state of the one or more second data objects; and
execute an asynchronous garbage collection process to remove copies of data objects that have been abandoned due to rollbacks, including the second copy of one or more second data objects”.
The preceding limitations, when combined with the rest of the limitations recited in claims 21 and 33 results in a combination of elements that is both novel and unobvious over the prior art of record.
Contact Information
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to HUAWEN A PENG whose telephone number is (571)270-5215. The examiner can normally be reached Mon thru Fri 9 am to 5 pm.
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/HUAWEN A PENG/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2169