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 .
Claims 1-11 are pending.
Priority
Acknowledgment is made of applicant's claim for foreign priority based on an application filed in China on 9/29/2024. It is noted, however, that applicant has not filed a certified copy of the 202411379642.7 application as required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Accordingly, the foreign priority date is not given during examination until a certified copy of the priority documents is filed.
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 1-11 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 because the claimed invention is directed to an a without significantly more.
Each of independent claims 1 and 8 recites a mental process in the limitation of “obtaining key-values pairs…”, which could be done mentally based on the gathered information. The limitations of “storing the key-value pairs….” appears to recite insignificant extra-solution activity at Step 2A Prong Two, and would be well-understood, routine, and conventional at Step 2B. This is nothing more than gathering/receiving information on which the mental process is performed.
Independent claim 5 also recites a mental process the limitations of “receiving a graph data read request for a graph database… determining a key in a key-value pair… retrieving, based on a prefetching address range”, which could be done mentally based on the gathered information.
Mental process is directed to one of the abstract ideas groups as set forth by Prong One in Step 2A of the 2019 Patent Subject Matter Eligibility Guidance.
Plus, the additional elements (e.g. key-value pairs, graph data, graph composition elements, keys, identifiers) are directed to types of information materials, which do not impose a meaningful limit on the judicial exception, such that the claims are more than a drafting effort design to monopolize exception, because the claimed steps could be performed in a same manner to achieve the same outcome with other types of information other than the ones being used in the claims.
Hence, the claims do not include additional elements or the combination of the elements are sufficient to amount to significantly more than the judicial exception and fail to integrate the judicial exception into practical application according to Prong Two in Step 2A of the 2019 Patent Subject Matter Eligibility Guidance because the claimed elements or their combination do not impose any meaningful limits on practicing the abstract idea.
Further, in view of Step 2B of the 2019 Patent Subject Matter Eligibility Guidance, it is determined that the computing elements (e.g. a graph database, processor, memories) in the claim 8 amount to no more than usage of a generic computing system having a generic computing components, which fails to provide an inventive concept or significantly more than abstract idea because the elements do not necessary improve the functional of a computing system or an improvement to a technical field since network computing is well known.
Each of dependent claims 2-4, 6 and 9-11 further recites additional elements (e.g. node type, time window identifier, palace holder, byte length) that are directed to types of information materials, which do not impose a meaningful limit on the judicial exception. Neither the steps nor the data materials provide any practical outcome or result led to any practical outcome, or improve the functional of a computer or an improvement to a technical field.
Dependent claim 7 recites an additional mental process in a limitation of “…determining…identifying…determining”, which could be performed mentally based on the gathered information. The additional elements (e.g. time window identifier) in the limitation are directed to types of information materials that are being manipulated, which do not impose a meaningful limit on the judicial exception.
Thus, for at least the reasoning above, the pending claims are not patent eligible.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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.
Claims 1-11 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Zhang et al (Pub No. US 2024/0378241, hereinafter Zhang).
With respect to claim 1, Zhang discloses a key-value pair storage method for graph data (abstract), comprising:
obtaining key-value pairs of graph composition elements, wherein values of the key-value pairs correspond to graph data of graph composition elements, keys of the key-value pairs each comprises identifier fields, wherein the graph composition elements are at least one of nodes or edges (limitation of “wherein values…edges” are directed to non-functional descriptive materials for not functionally impacting the claimed steps; [0050], Fig 1: obtain key-values pairs with a write request. The values of the pairs correspond to graph data of graph composition element via B-tree information. The keys of the key-value pairs include identifiers via index, and the graph composition element are at least nodes, as further described in [0074-0075]); and
storing the key-value pairs in order based on an arrangement sequence of category identifiers comprised in the keys (“category identifiers” are merely a type of data information; [0050]: store the key-value pairs based on arrangement sequence via B-tree and index).
Zhang does not explicitly disclose wherein the identifier fields comprise a category identifier of a corresponding graph composition element of the graph composition elements.
However, these differences are only found in the nonfunctional descriptive material and are not functionally involved in the steps recited. The obtaining and storing steps would be performed the same regardless of the data (e.g. identifier fields comprising a category identifier as claimed). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one skilled in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have different type of data identifiers with different identifier data corresponding to graph composition elements because such data does not functionally relate to the steps in the method claimed and because the subjective interpretation of the data does not patentably distinguish the claimed invention.
With respect to claim 5, Zhang discloses a graph data prefetching method (abstract), comprising:
receiving a graph data read request for a graph database, wherein values of the key-value pairs correspond to graph data of graph composition elements, keys of the key-value pairs each comprises identifier fields, wherein the graph composition elements are at least one of nodes or edges (limitation of “wherein values…edges” are directed to non-functional descriptive materials for not functionally impacting the claimed steps; [0093]: receive a read request for a graph database, The values of the pairs correspond to graph data of graph composition element via B-tree information. The keys of the key-value pairs include identifiers via index, and the graph composition element are at least nodes, as further described in [0074-0075] & [0112]);
determining a key in a key-value pair of a matched graph composition element in the graph composition elements and a storage address of a key-value pair of a graph composition element in the graph composition elements corresponding to the matched graph composition element ([0093]: determine a key in a pair and a storage location such that read result may be retrieved, as further described in [0112-0113]) ; and
retrieving, based on a prefetching address range that matches the storage address, a key-value pair stored in the prefetching address range ([0093]: retrieve a key-value pair based on prefetching address range via graph storage engine as read result are being retrieved).
Zhang does not explicitly disclose wherein the identifier fields comprise a category identifier of a corresponding graph composition element of the graph composition elements.
However, these differences are only found in the nonfunctional descriptive material and are not functionally involved in the steps recited. The obtaining and storing steps would be performed the same regardless of the data (e.g. identifier fields comprising a category identifier as claimed). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one skilled in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have different type of data identifiers with different identifier data corresponding to graph composition elements because such data does not functionally relate to the steps in the method claimed and because the subjective interpretation of the data does not patentably distinguish the claimed invention.
With respect to claim 8, Zhang discloses an electronic device (abstract), comprising:
at least one processor (Fig 5); and
one or more memories coupled to the at least one processor and storing programming instructions for execution by the at least one processor to perform operations (Fig 5) comprising:
obtaining key-value pairs of graph composition elements, wherein values of the key-value pairs correspond to graph data of graph composition elements, keys of the key-value pairs each comprises identifier fields, wherein the graph composition elements are at least one of nodes or edges (limitation of “wherein values…edges” are directed to non-functional descriptive materials for not functionally impacting the claimed steps; [0050], Fig 1: obtain key-values pairs with a write request. The values of the pairs correspond to graph data of graph composition element via B-tree information. The keys of the key-value pairs include identifiers via index, and the graph composition element are at least nodes, as further described in [0074-0075]); and
storing the key-value pairs in order based on an arrangement sequence of category identifiers comprised in the keys (“category identifiers” are merely a type of data information; [0050]: store the key-value pairs based on arrangement sequence via B-tree and index).
Zhang does not explicitly disclose wherein the identifier fields comprise a category identifier of a corresponding graph composition element of the graph composition elements.
However, these differences are only found in the nonfunctional descriptive material and are not functionally involved in the steps recited. The obtaining and storing steps would be performed the same regardless of the data (e.g. identifier fields comprising a category identifier as claimed). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one skilled in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have different type of data identifiers with different identifier data corresponding to graph composition elements because such data does not functionally relate to the steps in the method claimed and because the subjective interpretation of the data does not patentably distinguish the claimed invention.
With respect to claims 2, 6 and 9, Zhang further discloses wherein: when the graph composition elements are nodes, the category identifier comprises at least one of a node type or a first element type identifier indicating that a corresponding graph composition element is a node; and when the graph composition elements are edges, the category identifier comprises at least one of an edge type, directivity, a connected node, or a second element type identifier indicating that a corresponding graph composition element is an edge (the limitations are directed to non-functional descriptive materials that are directed to describe data element and do not impact any claimed step; [0050], Fig 1-2: the graph composition element are nodes of a graph database via B-tree, there are edges, connected nodes, edge and other type of data formation for graph data management).
With respect to claims 3 and 10, Zhang further discloses wherein a key in the key-value pairs comprises a time window identifier, and wherein a value corresponding to the key is incremental data of a corresponding graph composition element within a current time window compared to data of a graph composition element within a previous time window, wherein the current time window is indicated by the time window identifier (the limitations are directed to non-functional descriptive materials that are directed to describe data elements and do not impact any claimed step;[0080-0081]: the graph database and b-tree are corresponding to log and time information that represent time window and other data element being described).
With respect to claims 4 and 11, Zhang further discloses wherein the identifier fields comprise a placeholder located after the category identifier, wherein the placeholder is used to adjust a byte length of at least one of a key corresponding to a node or a key corresponding to an edge to make the byte lengths of the keys consistent (the limitations are directed to non-functional descriptive materials that are directed to describe data elements and do not impact any claimed step; Also the term “is used to” indicates intended usage which does not necessary carry patentable weight; [0050]: the data information includes place holder represented by storage location via graph database and b-tree as well as index, which are then used to adjust with modification, as further described in [0064]).
With respect to claim 7, Zhang further discloses wherein the key in the key-value pair further comprises a time window identifier, and wherein the determining a key in a key-value pair of a matched graph composition element in the graph composition elements comprises:
determining the target time window identifier based on a target time range comprised in the graph data read request ([0080], [0093]: determine time for the read request as the request is being processed) ;
identifying, in the key-value pairs, the key that comprises the target time window identifier ([0093]: identify the key with the result is being identified, as further described in [0112-0113]); and
determining the storage address of a key-value pair corresponding to the key as the key value pair of the matched graph composition element ( [0093], [0112-0113]: determine a location for key-value pair with read processing).
Examiner Note
Examiner has cited particular columns/paragraph and line numbers in the references applied to the claims above for the convenience of the applicant. Although the specified citations are representative of the teachings of the art and are applied to specific limitations within the individual claim, other passages and figures may apply as well. It is respectfully requested from the applicant in preparing responses, to fully consider the references in entirety as potentially teaching all or part of the claimed invention, as well as the context of the passage as taught by the prior art or disclosed by the Examiner.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Michelle Owyang whose telephone number is (571)270-1254. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday, 8am-6pm EST.
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/MICHELLE N OWYANG/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2168
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