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 .
Claims 1-7 are presented for examination.
Priority
The Applicant’s claim for priority based upon U.S. Provisional Application 62/846,449 filed on May 10, 2019 is duly noted by the examiner.
Claim Objections
Claim 1 is objected to due to an error with list markers. The claim has the letters d-k following the letter f in the listing. Corrections are required.
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 1-7 are rejected on the ground of nonstatutory double patenting as being unpatentable over claims 1-7 of U.S. Patent No. 12,249,188. Although the claims at issue are not identical, they are not patentably distinct from each other because both applications claim a system for printing, sending, receiving, and counting absentee ballots where each ballot has a unique identification code that is scanned and used in determining if it is a verified ballot of a verified voter. The claims are presented below for the Applicants’ convenience.
Application 18/983,362
U.S. Patent No. 12,249,188
1. A method for printing, sending, receiving and counting absentee ballots, comprising:
(a) creating a plurality of ballots, each of said ballots bearing a unique code device containing a unique identification code;
(b) receiving a communication from a would-be voter requesting a ballot, said communication being initiated from a personal computing device;
(c) verifying that said personal computing device must receive a biometric to become activated;
(d) receiving personal identification information from said would-be voter;
(e) comparing said received personal identification information with voter record information contained in the database of registered voter information to determine whether said would-be voter is registered to vote;
(f) in response to a positive identification of said would-be voter as a registered voter, storing in a balloted voter database a notation that said would be voter is to be sent one of said ballots;
(d) scanning unique code device on one of said ballots and storing the identification of said ballot in a sent ballots database;
(e) sending a ballot whose identification is noted in said sent ballots database to said would-be voter;
(f) receiving a communication from said registered voter using a personal computing device which can only be activated by a biometric, said communication comprising the output of a scan of the unique code device on said ballot sent to said would-be voter, said information including the unique identification code;
(g) in response to said communication from said registered voter comprising the output of said scan of said unique code device on said ballot, storing in a voted ballots database the unique identification code of said scaned ballot;
(h) receiving said scanned ballot from said would-be voter annotated with election choices;
(i) repeating steps (b) through (g) for a plurality of voters;
(j) for each of the ballots received from would-be voters, verifying that each ballot is included in the sent ballots database and is included in the voted ballots database, whereby the ballots that are included in the sent ballots database and in the voted ballots database are identified as verified ballots; and (k) counting the election choices in said verified ballots.
1. A method for printing, sending, receiving and counting absentee ballots, comprising:
(a) receiving a unique biometric identifier from a would-be voter and inputting the same into a database of registered voters;
(b) creating a plurality of ballots, each of said ballots bearing a unique code device containing a unique identification code;
(c) receiving a communication from said would-be voter requesting a ballot, said communication being initiated from a personal computing device;
(d) verifying that said personal computing device can only be activated by receiving a biometric;
(e) receiving personal identification information from said would-be voter;
(f) comparing and associating said received personal identification information with voter record information contained in said database of registered voter information to determine whether said would-be voter is registered to vote;
(g) in response to a positive identification of said would-be voter as a registered voter, storing in a balloted voter database a notation that said would be voter is to be sent one of said ballots;
(h) scanning a unique code device on one of said ballots and storing the identification of said ballot in a sent ballots database; and said storing being done with associated identification information associating said ballot with said would be voter,
(i) sending a ballot whose identification is noted in said sent ballots database to said would-be voter;
(j) receiving a communication from said registered voter using a personal computing device biometric, said communication comprising a locally generated biometric identifier and an output of a scan of the unique code device on said ballot sent to said would-be voter, and said information including the unique identification code;
(k) in response to said communication from said registered voter comprising the output of said scan of said unique code device on said ballot and said locally generated biometric identifier, storing in a voted ballots database the unique identification code of said scanned ballot;
(l) receiving said scanned ballot from said would-be voter annotated with election choices;
(m) repeating steps (b) through (j) for a plurality of voters;
(n) for each of the ballots received from would-be voters, verifying that each ballot is included in the sent-ballots database and is included in the voted ballots database, and verifying that the locally generated biometric identifier associated with the received ballot matches the stored biometric identifier associated with the would-be voter, whereby the ballots that have a matching biometric identifier, and which are included in the sent-ballots database and are identified as verified ballots; and
(o) counting the election choices in said verified ballots.
2. A method as in claim 1, wherein said creating a plurality of ballots with each of said ballots bearing a unique code device, comprises creating an optically readable code.
2. A method as in claim 1, wherein said creating a plurality of ballots with each of said ballots bearing a unique code device, comprises creating an optically readable code.
4. A method as in claim 2 wherein verifying that said personal computing device must receive a biometric to become activated; noting the identification of the computing device in a ballot computing device database.
3. A method as in claim 2 wherein verifying that said personal computing device must receive a biometric to become activated comprises noting the identification of the computing device in a ballot computing device database.
3. A method as in claim 1, wherein said creating a plurality of ballots with each of said ballots bearing a unique code device, comprises creating a near field communication device.
4. A method as in claim 1, wherein said creating a plurality of ballots with each of said ballots bearing a unique code device, comprises creating a near field communication device.
5. Apparatus for printing, sending, receiving and counting absentee ballots, comprising:
(a) a printer for creating a plurality of ballots, each of said ballots bearing a unique code device containing a unique identification code;
(b) a would-be voter personal computing device for sending a communication from a would be voter requesting a ballot and for sending personal identification information, wherein said personal computing device must receive a biometric to become activated;
(c) a board of elections computing device for receiving a communication from a would-be voter requesting a ballot, said board of elections computing device being operated by software which causes it to execute a program of steps:
(i) verifying that the personal computing device must receive a biometric to become activated;
(ii) receiving personal identification information from said would-be voter personal computing device;
(iii) comparing said received personal identification information with voter record information contained in the database of registered voter information a board of elections to determine whether said would-be voter is registered to vote; (d) a balloted voter database for storing a notation of a positive identification of said would-be voter as a registered voter, and for storing in the balloted voter database a notation that said would be voter is to be sent one of said ballots;
(e) a scanning device for scanning said unique code device on one of said ballots;
(f) a sent ballots database for storing the identification of said one ballot in said sent ballots database; and
(g) a voted ballots database for receiving an indication that a communication had been received from said registered voter personal computing device of said would be voter, said communication comprising the output of a scan of the unique code device on said ballot sent to said would-be voter, said information including the unique identification code, whereby returned voted ballots may be assessed for authenticity, wherein said program of steps comprises assessing authenticity of return ballots by determining that each ballot is included in the sent ballots database and is included in the voted ballots database, whereby the ballots that are included in the sent ballots database and in the voted ballots database are identified as verified ballots, and the election choices in said verified ballots may be counted.
5. Apparatus for printing, sending, receiving and counting absentee ballots, comprising:
(a) a printer for creating a plurality of ballots, each of said ballots bearing a unique code device containing a unique identification code;
(b) a would-be voter personal computing device for sending a communication from a would be voter requesting a ballot and for sending personal identification information, wherein said personal computing device can only be activated by receiving a biometric;
(c) a board of elections computing device for receiving a communication from a would-be voter requesting a ballot, said board of elections computing device being coupled to a database of registered voter information including voter biometric identifiers, and said board of elections computing device being operated by software which causes it to execute a program comprising:
(i) verifying that the personal computing device must receive a biometric to become activated;
(ii) receiving personal identification information from said would-be voter personal computing device;
(iii) comparing said received personal identification information with voter record information contained in said database of registered voter information of a board of elections to determine whether said would-be voter is registered to vote;
(d) a balloted voter database for storing a notation of a positive identification of said would-be voter as a registered voter, and for storing in the balloted voter database a notation that said would be voter is to be sent one of said ballots;
(e) a scanning device for scanning said unique code device on one of said ballots;
(f) a sent ballots database for storing the identification of said one ballot in said sent ballots database; and
(g) a voted ballots database for receiving an indication that a communication has been received from said registered voter personal computing device of said would be voter, said communication comprising the output of a scan of the unique code device on said ballot sent to said would-be voter, said information including the unique identification code, said communication further comprising a locally generated biometric identifier, whereby returned voted ballots may be assessed for authenticity, wherein said program of steps comprises assessing authenticity of returned ballots by determining that each ballot is included in the sent ballots database and is included in the voted ballots database and have a matching biometric identifier, whereby the ballots that are included in the sent ballots database and in the voted ballots database and have matching biometric identifiers are identified as verified ballots, and the election choices in said verified ballots may be counted.
6. Apparatus as in claim 5, wherein said unique code device comprises an optically readable code.
6. Apparatus as in claim 5, wherein said unique code device comprises an optically readable code.
7. Apparatus as in claim 5, wherein said unique code device comprises a near field communication device.
7. Apparatus as in claim 5, wherein said unique code device comprises a near field communication device.
Prior Art
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
U.S. Patent Publication 2014/0244512 to Liesenfelt discloses a method for separating private data from public data.
U.S. Patent Publication 2014/0207537 to Joyce et al. discloses express voting.
U.S. Patent Publication 2013/0251214 to Chung discloses a biometric registration and verification system and method.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to PAMESHANAND MAHASE whose telephone number is (571) 270-7223. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday- Friday 8:00AM - 5:00PM. If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Davetta Goins can be reached on 571-272-2957. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300. Information regarding the status of an application may be obtained from the Patent Application Information Retrieval (PAIR) system. Status information for published applications may be obtained from either Private PAIR or Public PAIR. Status information for unpublished applications is available through Private PAIR only. For more information about the PAIR system, see http://pair-direct.uspto.gov. Should you have questions on access to the Private PAIR system, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative or access to the automated information system, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/PAMESHANAND MAHASE/Examiner, Art Unit 2689
/DAVETTA W GOINS/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2689