DETAILED ACTION
Claims 1-20 are pending and rejected. This action is a non-final office action on the merits.
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 are directed to an abstract idea without significantly more.
Claims 1, 10, and 17 are directed to method, system and non-transitory medium which are statutory classes of invention. Step 1 – yes
Claim 1 has been identified as the model claim for analysis.
The limitations under their broadest reasonable interpretation cover performance of the limitation as certain methods of organizing human activity. Making payments for a parent/child relationship recites a fundamental economic practice. If a claim under it’s broadest reasonable interpretation covers performance of the limitation as a fundamental economic practice then it falls within certain methods of organizing human activity grouping of abstract ideas. Accordingly the claim recites an abstract idea.
The abstract elements include
creating, in response to receiving an indication to enroll in a management platform, a master account associated with a first user, the master account having master login credentials associated therewith; providing a management … to … in response to a login using the master login credentials; creating a subordinate account associated with a second user in response to a first user input via the management … the subordinate account having subordinate login credentials associated therewith; establishing one or more spending rules for the subordinate account in response to a second user input via the management … ;providing a subordinate … in response to a login using the subordinate login credentials; generating a subordinate payment token for a payment account associated with the master account; receiving, from …, a request to approve a first in-app purchase … , the request indicating that the … has received the subordinate payment token; retrieving, based on receiving the request indicating that the … has received the subordinate payment token, the one or more spending rules for the subordinate account; and approving the first … from the subordinate account based on the first … satisfying the one or more spending rules.
The technical elements including a processor computer and GUI are just applying generic computer elements to the abstract limitations. The recitation of generic computer components in a claim does not necessarily preclude that claim from reciting an abstract idea.
Claims 10 and 17 are similar to claim 1.
Step 2A prong 1 yest the claims recite an abstract idea.
The judicial exception is not integrated into a practical application. In particular the claims recite the additional elements of a computer GUI etc. The computer hardware and/or software is recited at a high level of generality such that it amounts to no more than mere instructions to apply the exception using a generic computer component. Accordingly these elements when considered separately and as an ordered combination do not integrate the abstract idea into a practical application because they do not impose meaningful limits on practicing the abstract idea and are at a high level of generality. There claims X, Y and Z are directed to an abstract idea without a practical application. Step 2A prong 2 No the additional claimed elements are not integrated into a practical application.
The claims do not contain additional elements because when considered separately or as ordered combination they do not add significantly more known as inventive concept. The integration of the abstract idea into a practical application. The additional elements of using a generic computer and a GUI amounts to no more than mere instructions to apply the inventive concept.
It appears that 0025 of the specification is referring to a parent/child account on known software applications like Xbox software using generic elements.
Accordingly these elements do not change the Step 2B no.
The dependent claims 2-9 and 11-16, and 18-20 are rejected because they do not further integrate the abstract idea into a practical application. Thus claims 1-20 are not patent eligible as claimed.
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.
Claim(s) 1-16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over
US Patent Publication 20110320294 to Votaw in view of US Patent Publication 20180158057 to Kirch
As per claim 1 Votaw discloses;
creating, in response to receiving an indication to enroll in a management platform, a master account associated with a first user,
the master account having master login credentials associated therewith;
providing a management graphical user interface (GUI) to a user device in response to a login using the master login credentials;
Votaw(master account, which is also primary account, 0052)
creating a subordinate account associated with a second user in response to a first user input via the management GUI,
the subordinate account having subordinate login credentials associated therewith;
Votaw(0071 a child account)
establishing one or more spending rules for the subordinate account in response to a second user input via the management GUI; providing a subordinate GUI in response to a login using the subordinate login credentials;
Votaw(0071 withdrawal rules for the subordinate account)
Votaw does not explicitly disclose what Kirch teahes;
generating a subordinate payment token for a payment account associated with the master account; receiving, from a computing system, a request to approve a first in-app purchase (IAP), the request indicating that the computing system has received the subordinate payment token;
Kirch(0057- in app purchase)
retrieving, based on receiving the request indicating that the computing system has received the subordinate payment token, the one or more spending rules for the subordinate account; and approving the first IAP from the subordinate account based on the first IAP satisfying the one or more spending rules. Kirch(0027 payment credentials, like applicant token, see applicant spec definition of token in 011)
It would therefore have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to combine the parent/child accounts of Votaw with the in app payment system of Kirch for the motivation of “protecting transaction accounts” (0002)
Claims 10, 17 are similar to claim 1.
As per claims 2, 11 Votaw disclose; The method of claim 1, further comprises:receiving, via the management GUI, a request for a funding rule;associating the funding rule with the subordinate account; andfunding the subordinate account based on the funding rule. Votaw(one or more could be one, 0013)
As 3 Votaw discloses;
The method of claim 2, further comprising updating the subordinate GUI to include the funding rule.
Votaw(0013,0021)
As per claim 4 Votaw discloses; The method of claim 2, wherein the funding rule includes a task and an incentive associated with a completion of the task. Votaw(0089, incentives for customers, task is a general term)
As per claim 5 Votaw discloses; The method of claim 4, further comprising receiving an indication of the completion of the task, wherein funding the subordinate account based on the funding rule comprises funding the subordinate account using the incentive associated with the task.
Votaw(0088)
Claim 12 is similar to claim 5
As per claim 6 Votaw discloses;
The method of claim 1, wherein the computing system is a digital platform computing system, the method further comprising associating the subordinate account with an account at the digital platform computing system. Votaw(0043)
Claims 13, 18 are similar to claim 6
As per claim 7 Votaw discloses; The method of claim 6, wherein establishing the one or more spending rules comprises: receiving, via the management GUI, a request for one or more content-based spending rules; and providing the one or more content-based spending rules to the digital platform computing system.
Votaw(0050)
As per claim 8 Votaw discloses; The method of claim 7, wherein approving the first IAP comprises receiving an indication of content requested in the first IAP and determining that the content requested satisfies the one or more content-based spending rules.
Votaw(0050)
As per claim 9 Votaw discloses;
The method of claim 6, wherein the one or more spending rules include an approved digital provider list, wherein the request to approve the first IAP includes an indication of a digital provider associated with the first IAP, and wherein approving the first IAP comprises confirming that the digital provider is on the approved digital provider list.
Votaw(0084, various rules for spending)
Claims 15, 19 are similar to claim 9.
As per claim 14 Votaw discloses; The system of claim 10, wherein the one or more spending rules require approval of the IAP request from the master account, wherein approving the first IAP comprises: providing, to the master GUI, an indication of the request for the first IAP; and receiving, from the master GUI, an indication of the approval of the first IAP.
Votaw(0052, master or primary account)
As per claim 16 Votaw discloses; The system of claim 10, wherein the one or more spending rules include one or more approved purchase time ranges, wherein the request to approve the first IAP includes an indication of the time the request approve the first IAP is made, and wherein approving the first IAP comprises confirming that the time the request approve the first IAP is made is within the one or more approved purchase time ranges. Votaw(0055, 0062 spending rules based on time)
Claim 20 is similar to claim 16.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure from IP.com
A Decentralised Digital Token Architecture for Public Transport, ARXIV.org 2020
Smart Parking: IoT and Blockchain, ARXIV.ORG 2019
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to BRUCE I EBERSMAN whose telephone number is (571)270-3442. The examiner can normally be reached 8:00 am - 5:00 pm Monday-Friday.
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/BRUCE I EBERSMAN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3693
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