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 .
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 101
35 U.S.C. 101 reads as follows:
Whoever invents or discovers any new and useful process, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter, or any new and useful improvement thereof, may obtain a patent therefor, subject to the conditions and requirements of this title.
Claims 1-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 because the claimed invention is directed to non-statutory subject matter. The claimed invention is directed to non-statutory subject matter because the claim(s) as a whole, considering all claim elements both individually and in combination, do not amount to significantly more than an abstract idea. As summarized in the 2019 Revised Patent Subject Matter Eligibility Guidance, examiners must perform a Two-Part Analysis for Judicial Exceptions.
Step 1
In Step 1, it must be determined whether the claimed invention is directed to a process, machine, manufacture or composition of matter. The instant invention encompasses a system in claims 1-10 (i.e., machines) and a ticket in claims 11-20. Since a ticket is directed to printed matter and is not directed to any one of the four statutory categories, claims 11-20 fail to meet the requirements of step 1. Only claims 1-10 meet the requirements of step 1.
Step 2A
Prong One
The claimed invention is directed to an abstract idea without significant more. The instant invention is broadly directed to “a system and individual tickets for a scratch-off lottery ticket game, and more particularly to a system and tickets with an enhanced multiplier function” ([0001]). Claim 1 recites the following (with emphasis added):
Claim 1: A system for providing scratch-off lottery tickets with a prize multiplier feature, comprising:
a set of the scratch-off lottery tickets for play in a game having a plurality of prizes in a multi-tier prize structure;
each of the scratch-off lottery tickets comprising:
a substrate with a game play area defined thereon and covered by a scratch-off coating, the game play area comprising a plurality of grid lines that define a plurality of grid spaces, each grid space comprising a game symbol therein;
a winning symbol area on the substrate that identifies one or more winning symbols, wherein at least one of the game symbols in the game play area corresponds to one of the winning symbols to win one or more of the prizes;
at least two of the grid spaces being matched grid spaces comprising a matching pattern of the grid lines that differentiates the matched grid spaces from other grid spaces, characteristics of the matching pattern determining a multiplier value; and
wherein when the game symbol in each of matched grid spaces also matches one of the winning symbols, a total prize associated with the matching symbols for each of the matched grid spaces is multiplied by the multiplier value.
The bold and underlined portions of claim 1 encompass the abstract idea, which is also encompassed by the dependent claims 2-10.
Claim 1 recites the rules on how to determine a multiplier value for a game and then calculate a game prize based on the determined multiplier value. These limitations, when given their broadest reasonable interpretation, are directed to certain methods of organizing human activity, mathematical concept and mental processes.
Prong Two
This judicial exception is not integrated into a practical application because mere instruction to implement on a computer or mobile device, or merely using a computer or mobile device as a tool to perform the abstract idea, adding insignificant extra solution activity, and/or generally linking the use of the abstract idea to a technological environment for field of use is not considered integration into a practical application. The claims do not include additional elements that are sufficient to amount to significantly more than the judicial exception because the present claims include additional elements other than the abstract idea which include a game ticket with game symbols and a scratch-off coating. These additional elements are directed to printed matter to carry out the game rules and they do not make the claim any less abstract. The claims are drafted in a result-oriented fashion, without the requisite specificity needed to provide a nonabstract technological solution.
Step 2B
Step 2B in the analysis requires us to determine whether the claims do significantly more than simply describe that abstract method. Mayo, 132 S. Ct. at 1297. We must examine the limitations of the claims to determine whether the claims contain an "inventive concept" to "transform" the claimed abstract idea into patent-eligible subject matter. Alice, 134 S. Ct. at 2357 (quoting Mayo, 132 S. Ct. at 1294, 1298). The transformation of an abstract idea into patent-eligible subject matter "requires 'more than simply stat[ing] the [abstract idea] while adding the words 'apply it."' Id. (quoting Mayo, 132 S. Ct. at 1294) (alterations in original). "A claim that recites an abstract idea must include 'additional features' to ensure 'that the [claim] is more than a drafting effort designed to monopolize the [abstract idea].'" Id. (quoting Mayo, 132 S. Ct. at 1297) (alterations in original). Those "additional features" must be more than "well-understood, routine, conventional activity." Mayo, 132 S. Ct. at 1298.
The present claims include additional elements other than the abstract idea which include a game ticket with game symbols and a scratch-off coating. These additional elements are directed to printed matter and are merely used for insignificant extra-solution activity, in which the game rules can be applied based on game symbols and matching grid patterns. The present claims do not include additional elements that are sufficient to amount to significantly more than the judicial exception, and the claims fail to improve any technological field.
The claims are generally linked to implementation of an abstract idea using printed matter. When looked at individually and as a whole, the claim limitations are determined to be an abstract idea without "significantly more," and thus not patent eligible.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1-20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Lucci et al. [US20230191237], hereinafter Lucci.
Regarding claim 1, Lucci discloses a system for providing scratch-off lottery tickets with a prize multiplier feature (title), comprising:
a set of the scratch-off lottery tickets for play in a game having a plurality of prizes in a multi-tier prize structure ([0059], “the exemplary embodiment 200′ of FIG. 2B is rendered in grayscale and consequently is suitable for physical paper scratch-off tickets created by monochromatic imagers”);
each of the scratch-off lottery tickets comprising:
a substrate with a game play area defined thereon and covered by a scratch-off coating, the game play area comprising a plurality of grid lines that define a plurality of grid spaces, each grid space comprising a game symbol therein (Fig. 2B, 203′, 204′, and 205′);
a winning symbol area on the substrate that identifies one or more winning symbols, wherein at least one of the game symbols in the game play area corresponds to one of the winning symbols to win one or more of the prizes (Fig. 2B, 202’);
at least two of the grid spaces being matched grid spaces comprising a matching pattern of the grid lines that differentiates the matched grid spaces from other grid spaces, characteristics of the matching pattern determining a multiplier value (Fig. 2B, 201’, 2 times, 5 times and 10 times); and
wherein when the game symbol in each of matched grid spaces also matches one of the winning symbols, a total prize associated with the matching symbols for each of the matched grid spaces is multiplied by the multiplier value ([0059], “The FIG. 2B human readable instructions 201′ are similar to the color embodiment 200 with a description of the grayscale imaging replacing the color multiplier feature. Similarly, the “Your Numbers” grouping 203′ would win a total of $108 with the “Your Numbers” grouping 204′ winning a total of $507 and Your Numbers” grouping 205′ winning a total of $65 with the same winning numbered indicia arranged in the exact same grid positions”).
Regarding claim 2, Lucci discloses the system of claim 1, wherein the matching pattern of the grid lines comprises a visually enhanced characteristic of the grid lines at a same side location for each of the matched grid spaces (Fig. 2B, 203′, 204′, and 205′).
Regarding claim 3, Lucci discloses the system of claim 2, wherein the visually enhanced characteristic comprises any one or combination of: line darkness, number of adjacent lines, dashed or broken line segments, or line color (Fig. 2B, 203′ and 204′).
Regarding claim 4, Lucci discloses the system of claim 2, wherein the multiplier value increases as a function of a number of sides of the matched grid spaces having the visually enhanced characteristic (Fig. 2B, 203′ [Wingdings font/0xE0] 204′, 2 times [Wingdings font/0xE0] 10 times).
Regarding claim 5, Lucci discloses the system of claim 2, wherein the multiplier value increases as a function of a type of the visually enhanced characteristic (Fig. 2B, 203′ [Wingdings font/0xE0] 204′, 2 times [Wingdings font/0xE0] 10 times).
Regarding claim 6, Lucci discloses the system of claim 2, wherein the matched grid spaces are remote from each other in the game play area (Fig. 2B, 203′, grids with 8 and 9, 1 and 5).
Regarding claim 7, Lucci discloses the system of claim 2, wherein the matched grid spaces are adjacent to each other in the game play area (Fig. 2B, 203′, grids with 8 and 7, 1 and 7, etc.).
Regarding claim 8, Lucci discloses the system of claim 7, wherein the matched grid spaces share a common side (Fig. 2C, “Box Pattern”).
Regarding claim 9, Lucci discloses the system of claim 1, wherein the matched grid spaces comprise at least three of the grid spaces having the same matching pattern of the grid lines, wherein the multiplier value is a function of a number of the matched grid spaces that contain one of the winning symbols (Figs. 2B and 2D, black with white center has more matched grid spaces and higher multiplier value in 2B).
Regarding claim 10, Lucci discloses the system of claim 1, wherein the matched grid spaces comprise a first set and a second set, wherein the matching pattern of the grid lines in the first set is different than the matching pattern of the grid lines in the second set, and wherein the multiplier value is different for the first and second sets (Fig. 2B, 203′, 204′, and 205′).
Regarding claims 11-20, please refer to the claim rejections of claims 1-10.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to YINGCHUAN ZHANG whose telephone number is (571)272-1375. The examiner can normally be reached 8:00 - 4:30 M-F.
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/YINGCHUAN ZHANG/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3711
