DETAILED ACTION
In response to the communication filed on 09/18/2026, responded in following.
On this Office Action, claims 1-20, consisting of independent claims 1, 8, and 14.
Claims 1-20 are pending.
Claims 1-20 are Double Patent rejected.
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 .
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 09/09/2025. The submission is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Drawings
The drawings were received on 06/09/2025. These drawings are accepted.
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 1-20 are rejected on the ground of nonstatutory double patenting as being unpatentable over claims 1-20 of U.S. Patent No. 12,407,684 (hereinafter PAT-684). Although the claims at issue are not identical, they are not patentably distinct from each other because independent claim 1, 8 and 14 recites the same respective system, computer program product, and method operations as patent claims 1, 8, and 14. The broader recitation of a “previous user image” in the instant claims does not render them patentably distinct from the patent claims’ recitation of an image previously provided by the user (See the table provided below).
Instant Application 19/232,519
PAT-684
1. A system for implementing authentication control protocols via components of entity device, the system comprising:
a memory device with computer-readable program code stored thereon;
a communication device; and
a processing device operatively coupled to the memory device and the communication device, wherein the computer-readable program code is configured, when executed, to cause the processing device to:
determine initiation of a resource interaction by a user at an entity device;
control one or more components of the entity device to cause the entity device to capture a real-time image of the user;
retrieve a previous user image of the user associated with a previous time period ;
generate an updated enhanced user image reflecting current appearance of the user for a current time period based on the previous user image, wherein the current time period is a time period associated with the initiation of the resource interaction by the user;
compare the real-time image captured via the entity device with the updated enhanced user image of the user generated for the current time period;
in response to comparing the real-time image with the updated enhanced user image, determine if the real-time image matches the updated enhanced user image; and
implement one or more authentication control protocols based on determining if the real-time image matches the updated enhanced user image
1. A system for implementing authentication control protocols via components of entity device, the system comprising:
a memory device with computer-readable program code stored thereon;
a communication device; and
a processing device operatively coupled to the memory device and the communication device, wherein the processing device is configured to execute the computer-readable program code to:
determine initiation of a resource interaction by a user at an entity device;
control one or more components of the entity device to cause the entity device to capture a real-time image of the user;
retrieve a user image provided by the user a previous time period during processing of one or more resource pools associated with the user;
generate an updated enhanced user image reflecting current appearance of the user for a current time period based on the user image provided at the previous time period, wherein the current time period is a time period associated with the initiation of the resource interaction by the user;
compare the real-time image captured via the entity device with the updated enhanced user image of the user generated for the current time period;
in response to comparing the real-time image with the updated enhanced user image, determine if the real-time image matches the updated enhanced user image; and
implement one or more authentication control protocols based on determining if the real-time image matches the updated enhanced user image.
Dependent claim 2-7,9-13, and 15-20 recite limitations corresponding to those of the same-numbered patent claims and likewise do not render the claims patentably distinct.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Majerus et al. (US 20230205855 A1): [0021] the memory 210 can be a non-transitory computer readable medium having computer readable instructions (e.g., computer program instructions) stored thereon that are executable by the processing resource 212 to generate a real-time image including an attempted user using the image sensor 202, compare the real-time image to a reference image of an authorized user stored in the memory 210 using the processing resource 212 coupled to the image sensor 202, identify an obstructed portion of the attempted user in the real-time image based at least in part on comparing the real-time image to the reference image, compare an unobstructed portion of the attempted user in the real-time image to a portion of the authorized user in the reference image corresponding to the unobstructed portion of the attempted user in the real-time image, provide access to the computing device 200 in response to the unobstructed portion of the attempted user in the real-time image matching the portion of the authorized user in the reference image, and reject access to the computing device 200 in response to the unobstructed portion of the attempted user in the real-time image being different from the portion of the authorized user in the reference image.
Upadhyay (US 20210344491 A1): [0063] The method 340 also includes receiving at least one real-time image of the user's environment captured by an image capturing device in real time in step 390. In one embodiment, receiving the at least one real-time image comprises receiving the at least one real-time image by an input receiving module. In such embodiment, receiving the at least one real-time image comprises receiving the at least one real-time image captured by one or more sensors, one or more cameras or the like.
Chow et al. (US 10061996 B1): (4) Conventionally, face recognition methods use a real-time captured image of the subject's face to find a match in a library of previously captured facial images. The face matching process is relatively accurate in comparison to other biometric identification methods with well-developed and tested facial feature analysis techniques. In general, the techniques extract characteristic data of a face region as shown in FIG. 1, which is unique for each person, from the captured image of the subject's face, and compares the characteristic data against those stored in the library, thereby matching the subject's face to that of a previously registered person.
CHANCHLANI et al. (US 20230306786 A1): [0014] The identifying the user of the electronic device may include: determining a probability of at least one attentiveness feature of the face of the user based on one of: the second distance between the resized first facial descriptor coordinates and the second facial descriptor coordinates being less than the second distance threshold and a distance between an original position of eyeballs of the user and a real-time position of eyeballs of the user; determining a probability of at least one inattentiveness feature of the face of the user based on one of: the second distance between the resized first facial descriptor coordinates and the second facial descriptor coordinates being less than the second distance threshold, and the distance between the original position of eyeballs of the user and the real-time position of eyeballs of the user; determining whether the probability of the at least one attentiveness feature is greater than the probability of the at least one inattentiveness feature; and determining that one of: the face of the user is attentive, in response to determining that the probability of the at least one attentiveness feature is greater than the probability of the at least one inattentiveness feature, and the face of the user is not attentive, in response to determining that the probability of the at least one attentiveness feature is not greater than the probability of the at least one inattentiveness feature.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ANDREW SUH whose telephone number is (571)270-5524. The examiner can normally be reached 9:00 AM- 5:00 PM.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Carl Colin can be reached at (571) 272-3862. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/ANDREW SUH/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2493
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