DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
1. The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Status of the Application
2. Pursuant to the application filed May 21, 2025, claims 1-20 are pending.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 101
3. 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.
4. Claim 9 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 because the claimed invention is directed to non-statutory subject matter. The claim(s) does/do not fall within at least one of the four categories of patent eligible subject matter because claim 9 recites, in relevant part, “[a] computer-readable storage medium.” The specification does not limit the scope of the term, “computer-readable storage medium” to a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium. For that reason, the limitation, “computer-readable storage medium” comprises electromagnetic radiation modulated with digital code, which is a signal, which is per se non-statutory subject matter.
Claims 15-17 are rejected for the same reasons as claim 9 because claims 15-17 depend from claim 9.
Clam 10 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 because the claimed invention is directed to non-statutory subject matter. The claim(s) does/do not fall within at least one of the four categories of patent eligible subject matter because claim 10 recites, in relevant part, “[a] computer program product, wherein the computer program product comprises computer programs.” A computer program product that comprises computer programs is a computer program, and the specification does not state that the computer program product is anything other than a computer program. A computer program is per se nonstatutory subject matter.
Claims 18-20 are rejected for the same reasons as claim 10 because claims 18-20 because claims 18-20 depend from claim 10.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
5. 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.
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.
6. Claims 1, 2, 6-11, 15, and 18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Biffert et al. (US 2024/0407332 A1).
Regarding claim 1, Biffert discloses:
an animal pregnancy determination method ([0173], [0263]),
wherein an animal wears a communication transmitting device ([0042]; FIG. 2: 20), and
a communication receiving device, automatically and communicatively connected to a communication transmitting device in a preset range, is mounted in a feeding area of the animal ([0095]; FIG. 3: 62); and
the method comprises:
obtaining animal behavior data received by the communication receiving device ([0044], [0095]), wherein the animal behavior data is collected when the communication transmitting device enters the preset range ([0126]);
the animal behavior data comprises body temperature ([0034], [0166]; FIG. 13) data and feeding data ([0051], [0134]);
the body temperature data is collected by the communication transmitting device ([0204], [0206]); and
the feeding data is determined based on communication interaction data between the communication transmitting device and the communication receiving device ([0134]); and
Biffert does not explicitly disclose determining that the animal is pregnant when the animal behavioral data is consistent with a change rule of a physiological sign of an animal during pregnancy, but Biffert does disclose determining that the animal is pregnant based on the physical parameters, activity, and behavior of the animal ([0263]); and Biffert does disclose determining that the animal is pregnant based on internal body temperature over time, weight, location, relative position and angle to nearby herd members, orientation, elevation, and movement and based on selected activity determinations (e.g., eating, drinking, ambulation) ([0331]), which indicates that the determination that the animal is pregnant is based on changes in activity determinations corresponding to changes in physiological data, which suggests that the method of Biffert comprises determining that the animal is pregnant when the animal behavioral data is consistent with a change rule of a physiological sign of an animal during pregnancy for the benefit of enabling the method to determine that the animal is pregnant based on changes in activity determinations corresponding to changes in physiological data;
it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the application to have configured the method of Biffert in the foregoing manner because that would have enabled the method to determine that the animal is pregnant based on changes in activity determinations corresponding to changes in physiological data.
Regarding claim 2, Biffert discloses:
that the animal behavioral data comprises behavioral data of a current time point ([0060]) and behavioral data of a historical time point ([0060]),
the behavioral data of the current time point comprises body temperature data ([0034], [0128]; FIG. 13) and feeding data ([0212], [0255], [0389]) of the current time point ([0060], [0128]), and
the behavioral data of the historical time point comprises body temperature data and feeding data of the historical time point ([0060]); and
the step of determining that the animal is pregnant when the animal behavioral data is consistent with a change rule of a physiological sign of an animal during pregnancy comprises:
determining a difference between the behavioral data of the current time point and the behavioral data of the historical time point ([0263], [0331]), and determining that the animal is pregnant when the difference is consistent with the change rule of the physiological sign ([0263], [0331]; see the rejection of claim 1; Biffert discloses determining that the animal is pregnant based on behavioral and physiological changes over time).
Regarding clam 6, Biffert does not explicitly disclose determining that the animal is not pregnant when the animal behavior data is not consistent with the change rule of the physiological sign, but Biffert does disclose determining that the animal is pregnant when the animal behavior data is consistent with the change rule of the physiological sign (see the rejection of claim 1), which suggests that when the animal behavior data is not consistent with the change rule of the physiological sign, the conditions for a determination of pregnancy have not been met, which further suggests that the method of Biffert comprises determining that the animal is not pregnant when the animal behavior data is not consistent with the change rule of the physiological sign for the benefit that a finding that the conditions for a determination of pregnancy have not been met constitutes a determination that the animal is not pregnant.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the arty before the effective filing date of the application to have configured the method of Biffert in the foregoing manner because that would have enabled the method to provide that a finding that the conditions for a determination of pregnancy have not been met constitutes a determination that the animal is not pregnant.
Regarding claim 7, Biffert discloses that the body temperature data comprises an average value of the body temperature of the animal in a preset duration. ([0160])
Regarding claim 8, Biffert discloses:
a device ([0044]; FIG. 2: 20), wherein the device comprises:
a processor ([0086]; FIG. 3: 50), configured to store a memory of processor-executable instructions ([0086], [0094]; FIG. 3: 50, 60),
wherein the processor realizes the method according to claim 1 when invoking the executable instructions ([0086], [0088], [0094]; and see the rejection of claim 1).
Regarding claim 9, Biffert discloses a computer-readable storage medium, storing computer instructions thereon, wherein the computer instructions execute steps of the method according to claim1when executed by a processor. ([0094]; Fig. 3: 60; and see the rejection of claim 1)
Regarding claim 10, Biffert discloses a computer program product, wherein the computer program product comprises computer programs, and the method according to claim 1 is realized when the computer programs are executed by a processor. ([0094]; Fig. 3: 60; and see the rejection of claim 1)
Claim 11 is rejected as claim 2.
Claim 15 is rejected as claim 2.
Claim 18 is rejected as claim 2.
Allowable Subject Matter
7. Claim 3 is objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Claim 4 is objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Claim 5 is objected to for the same reasons as claim 4 because claim 5 depends from claim 4.
Claim 12 is objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Claim 13 is objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Claim 14 is objected to for the same reasons as claim 13 because claim 14 depends from claim 13.
Claim 16 is objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Claim 17 is objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Claim 19 is objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Claim 20 is objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Conclusion
8. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JOHN F MORTELL whose telephone number is (571)270-1873. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 10-7 ET.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Davetta Goins can be reached at 571-272-2957. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/JOHN F MORTELL/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2689
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