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 .
This is a Non-Final Office Action Correspondence in response to U.S. Application No. 19/264,054 filed on 07/09/2025.
Claims 1-9 are pending. Claims 1 and 9 are independent claims.
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 §§ 706.02(l)(1) - 706.02(l)(3) 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 USPTO Internet website contains terminal disclaimer forms which may be used. Please visit www.uspto.gov/patent/patents-forms. The filing date of the application in which the form is filed determines what form (e.g., PTO/SB/25, PTO/SB/26, PTO/AIA /25, or PTO/AIA /26) should be used. A web-based eTerminal Disclaimer may be filled out completely online using web-screens. An eTerminal Disclaimer that meets all requirements is auto-processed and approved immediately upon submission. For more information about eTerminal Disclaimers, refer to www.uspto.gov/patents/process/file/efs/guidance/eTD-info-I.jsp.
Claims 1-5, 7, and 9 are rejected on the ground of nonstatutory double patenting as being unpatentable over claims 1-6 and 8 of U.S. Patent No. 12,380,172 B2. Although the claims at issue are not identical, they are not patentably distinct from each other because they are claiming the same subject matter.
Claims 1-5, 7, and 9 of the instant application are claiming the same subject matter that are recited in claims 1-6 and 8 of U.S. Patent No. 12,380,172 B2 as follows:
Instant Application
US Patent No. 12,380,172 B2
1. A method of collecting data from dark web domains, the method comprising: collecting, from a dark web network, addresses of dark web domains that require software specifically designed to access and cannot be a accessed using a general browser; upon collecting, storing the collected address and status information of the dark web domains in a domain database; cyclically checking current status of at least part of the dark web domains and updating the status in the domain database; and dynamically allocating distributed crawlers for crawling content data to one or more dark web domains based on changes in the domain database; wherein dynamically allocating distributed crawlers comprises: configuring one or more Tor node containers, setting a plurality of network cards in each of the one or more Tor node containers, executing a plurality of Tor client nodes in each of the one or more Tor node containers, providing a web proxy function and a load balancing function to the one or more Tor node containers, and allocating a dark web traffic generated according to operation of the distributed crawler to the plurality of Tor client nodes through the load balancing function and the web proxy function.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein, when a first distributed crawler of the distributed crawlers becomes available for crawling, the first distributed crawler is allocated preferentially to one dark web domain that is the most recently registered.
3. The method of claim 1, wherein, when a first distributed crawler of the distributed crawlers becomes available for crawling, the first distributed crawler is allocated preferentially to one dark web domain whose registration status is the most recently updated.
4. The method of claim 1, wherein cyclically checking current status of at least part of the dark web domains comprises: provides status information indicative of at least one of closure, operation, or change of at least part of the dark web domain, and generating the status information as meta data.
5. The method of claim 1, wherein the method further comprises: running at least one network node that performs network routing functions in the dark web network; and collecting data from an arbitrary domain by processing a request from the at least one distributed crawler in the at least one network node.
7. The method of claim 1, wherein collecting addresses of dark web domains comprises at least one of using a Tor search engine and referring to information recorded on a dark web domain index.
9. A non-transitory computer-readable recording medium in which a computer program executed by an apparatus of collecting data from dark web domains, the computer program comprising: collecting, from a dark web network, addresses of dark web domains that require software specifically designed to access and cannot be a accessed using a general browser; upon collecting, storing the collected address and status information of the dark web domains in a domain database; cyclically checking current status of at least part of the dark web domains and updating the status in the domain database; and dynamically allocating distributed crawlers for crawling content data to one or more dark web domains based on changes in the domain database, wherein dynamically allocating distributed crawlers comprises: configuring one or more Tor node containers, setting a plurality of network cards in each of the one or more Tor node containers, executing a plurality of Tor client nodes in each of the one or more Tor node containers, providing a web proxy function and a load balancing function to the one or more Tor node containers, and allocating a dark web traffic generated according to operation of the distributed crawler to the plurality of Tor client nodes through the load balancing function and the web proxy function.
1. A method of collecting data from dark web domains, the method comprising: providing a domain database for storing information concerning dark web domains; collecting, from a dark web network, addresses of dark web domains that require software specifically designed to access and cannot be accessed using a general browser; upon collecting, storing the collected addresses and status information of the dark web domains in a domain database; cyclically checking current status of at least part of the dark web domains and updating the status information in the domain database; and dynamically allocating distributed crawlers for crawling content data to one or more dark web domains based on changes in the domain database such that, when a first distributed crawler of the distributed crawlers becomes available for crawling, the first distributed crawler is allocated preferentially to one of the dark web domains that have been most recently registered or updated.
8. The method of claim 1, wherein dynamically allocating distributed crawlers comprises: configuring at least one Tor node container and setting a plurality of network cards in the container; executing a plurality of Tor node clients in the at least one container and providing a web proxy function and a load balancing function to one of the plurality of Tor node clients; and allocating a dark web traffic generated according to operation of the distributed crawler to at least one or the plurality of Tor node clients through the load balancing function and the web proxy function.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein first distributed crawler is allocated preferentially to one dark web domain that is the most recently registered.
3. The method of claim 1, wherein the first distributed crawler is allocated preferentially to the one dark web domain whose registration status is the most recently updated.
4. The method of claim 1, wherein cyclically checking current status of a dark web domain provides status information indicative of at least one of closure, operation, or change of the dark web domain, wherein the method further comprises generating the status information as meta data.
5. The method of claim 1, wherein the method further comprises: running at least one network node that performs network routing functions in the dark web network; and collecting data from an arbitrary domain by processing a request from the at least one distributed crawler in the at least one network node.
6. The method of claim 1, wherein collecting addresses of dark web domains comprises at least one of using a Tor search engine and referring to information recorded on a dark web domain index.
1. A method of collecting data from dark web domains, the method comprising: providing a domain database for storing information concerning dark web domains; collecting, from a dark web network, addresses of dark web domains that require software specifically designed to access and cannot be accessed using a general browser; upon collecting, storing the collected addresses and status information of the dark web domains in a domain database; cyclically checking current status of at least part of the dark web domains and updating the status information in the domain database; and dynamically allocating distributed crawlers for crawling content data to one or more dark web domains based on changes in the domain database such that, when a first distributed crawler of the distributed crawlers becomes available for crawling, the first distributed crawler is allocated preferentially to one of the dark web domains that have been most recently registered or updated.
8. The method of claim 1, wherein dynamically allocating distributed crawlers comprises: configuring at least one Tor node container and setting a plurality of network cards in the container; executing a plurality of Tor node clients in the at least one container and providing a web proxy function and a load balancing function to one of the plurality of Tor node clients; and allocating a dark web traffic generated according to operation of the distributed crawler to at least one or the plurality of Tor node clients through the load balancing function and the web proxy function.
As to claims 1-5, 7, and 9, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have derived their claim limitations from claims 1-6 and 8 of U.S. Patent No. 12,380,172 B2 since they are claiming the same subject matter and are substantially similar in scope.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 6 and 8 are 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; and/or also with the Applicant’s filing a Terminal’s Disclaimer to overcome the nonstatutory double patenting rejection.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. See Form PTO-892.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ALEXANDER KHONG whose telephone number is (571)270-7127. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri 8am-5pm EST.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Charles Rones can be reached on (571)272-4085. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/ALEXANDER KHONG/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2168
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