BBY SOLUTIONS, INCDownload PDFPatent Trials and Appeals BoardMay 1, 202014704776 - (D) (P.T.A.B. May. 1, 2020) Copy Citation UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE United States Patent and Trademark Office Address: COMMISSIONER FOR PATENTS P.O. Box 1450 Alexandria, Virginia 22313-1450 www.uspto.gov APPLICATION NO. FILING DATE FIRST NAMED INVENTOR ATTORNEY DOCKET NO. CONFIRMATION NO. 14/704,776 05/05/2015 Sanu Patel-Zellinger 1060.045US1 3953 21186 7590 05/01/2020 SCHWEGMAN LUNDBERG & WOESSNER, P.A. P.O. BOX 2938 MINNEAPOLIS, MN 55402 EXAMINER ZIMMERMAN, MATTHEW E ART UNIT PAPER NUMBER 3684 NOTIFICATION DATE DELIVERY MODE 05/01/2020 ELECTRONIC Please find below and/or attached an Office communication concerning this application or proceeding. The time period for reply, if any, is set in the attached communication. Notice of the Office communication was sent electronically on above-indicated "Notification Date" to the following e-mail address(es): SLW@blackhillsip.com uspto@slwip.com PTOL-90A (Rev. 04/07) UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE ____________ BEFORE THE PATENT TRIAL AND APPEAL BOARD ____________ Ex parte SANU PATEL-ZELLINGER, JULIE DURHAM, BRIAN FLYNN, RYAN MENDOZA, RICHARD R. PATTERSON, ROB VANHOUT, STEPHEN JAKALA, CHARLES ROONEY, VIKAS JAISWAL, MAGESH VENKATESAN, RAGHU VENKATESHWAR, ASAD KHAN, PUNEET K. GUPTA, VAIBHAV AGRAWAL, ERIC BERENS, and CURTIS JANICKE ____________ Appeal 2019-006791 Application 14/704,776 Technology Center 3600 ____________ Before HUBERT C. LORIN, BRADLEY B. BAYAT, and AMEE A. SHAH, Administrative Patent Judges. BAYAT, Administrative Patent Judge. DECISION ON APPEAL STATEMENT OF THE CASE Appellant1 appeals under 35 U.S.C. § 134(a) from the Examiner’s final rejection of claims 1–3, 5–12, and 14–20, which are all the claims pending in the application. We have jurisdiction under 35 U.S.C. § 6(b). We AFFIRM. 1 We use the term “Appellant” to refer to “applicant” as defined in 37 C.F.R. § 1.42. Appellant identifies the real party in interest as “BBY Solutions, Inc.” Appeal Br. 2. Appeal 2019-006791 Application 14/704,776 2 CLAIMED INVENTION Appellant’s discloure “pertain[s] to order fulfillment, logistics, and delivery techniques for items of commerce.” Spec. ¶ 1. Claims 1, 10, and 17 are the independent claims on appeal. Claim 1, reproduced below with added bracketed notations and emphasis, is illustrative of the claimed subject matter. See Appeal Br., Claims App. 1. A method for processing data in a delayed order delivery fulfillment scenario, the method performed by a computer system comprising at least one hardware processor, and the method comprising: [(a)] collecting data for a plurality of shipments, the data including information to indicate respective delivery statuses of the plurality of shipments; [(b)] calculating, from the data for the plurality of shipments, that a delay condition has occurred for a shipment of a first product instance of a product, the delay condition indicating that at least one shipment is undeliverable to a destination by a target delivery date; [(c)] searching inventories of in-store locations to determine a plurality of in-store locations that have an instance of the product stocked in inventory, and distances from each of the plurality of instore locations to the destination; [(d)] electronically selecting a particular in-store location of the plurality of in-store locations that have an instance of the product stocked in inventory, the selecting of the particular in- store location based on proximity of the particular in-store location to the destination, the particular in-store location having a shortest distance among the distances; [(e)] identifying a second product instance stocked in inventory of the particular in-store location to fulfill delivery of the product in a replacement shipment to the destination; [(f)] creating data that identifies at least one shipment option for a substitute delivery of the second product instance in the replacement shipment, the substitute delivery of the second Appeal 2019-006791 Application 14/704,776 3 product instance scheduled to occur from the inventory at the particular in-store location to the destination by the target delivery date; [(g)] creating data including an electronic delivery instruction to trigger performance of the substitute delivery of the second product instance in the replacement shipment, wherein the data including the delivery instruction to trigger performance of the substitute delivery of the replacement shipment to the destination indicates that the substitute delivery is to be performed via a selected shipment option of the identified at least one shipment option; and [(h)] sending a notification including an identification of the second product instance stocked in the inventory of the particular in-store location and the selected shipment option to a device of the particular in-store location, [(i)] wherein in response to the notification, the device of the particular instore location generates the electronic delivery instruction on a user interface or prints the electronic delivery instruction on a shipping label. REJECTION Claims 1–3, 5–12, and 14–20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. § 101 as directed to a judicial exception without significantly more. OPINION Under 35 U.S.C. § 101, an invention is patent eligible if it claims a “new and useful process, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter.” 35 U.S.C. § 101. The Supreme Court, however, has long interpreted § 101 to include an implicit exception: “[l]aws of nature, natural phenomena, and abstract ideas” are not patentable. Alice Corp. v. CLS Bank Int’l, 573 U.S. 208, 216 (2014). Appeal 2019-006791 Application 14/704,776 4 The Supreme Court, in Alice, reiterated the two-step framework previously set forth in Mayo Collaborative Services v. Prometheus Laboratories, Inc., 566 U.S. 66 (2012), “for distinguishing patents that claim laws of nature, natural phenomena, and abstract ideas from those that claim patent-eligible applications of those concepts.” Alice Corp., 573 U.S. at 217. The first step in that analysis is to “determine whether the claims at issue are directed to one of those patent-ineligible concepts.” Id. If the claims are not directed to a patent-ineligible concept, e.g., an abstract idea, the inquiry ends. Otherwise, the inquiry proceeds to the second step where the elements of the claims are considered “individually and ‘as an ordered combination’” to determine whether there are additional elements that “‘transform the nature of the claim’ into a patent-eligible application.” Id. (quoting Mayo, 566 U.S. at 78, 79). This is “a search for an ‘inventive concept’ — i.e., an element or combination of elements that is ‘sufficient to ensure that the patent in practice amounts to significantly more than a patent upon the [ineligible concept] itself.’” Id. at 217–18 (alteration in original). In rejecting the pending claims under 35 U.S.C. § 101 and under the first step of the Alice framework, the Examiner determined that the claims are “directed to the abstract idea of scheduling substituted delivery for shipment delays.” Final Act. 4. According to the Examiner, this is a “certain method of organizing human activity. ” Id. at 4; see also Ans. 4. Appellant argues claims 1–3, 5–12, and 14–20 together as a group. See Appeal Br. 9–16. We select independent claim 1 as representative for the group. Thus, pursuant to 37 C.F.R § 41.37, claims 2, 3, 5–12, and 14–20 stand or fall with claim 1. Appeal 2019-006791 Application 14/704,776 5 The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (the “USPTO”) has published revised guidance for use by USPTO personnel in evaluating subject matter eligibility under 35 U.S.C. § 101. 2019 REVISED PATENT SUBJECT MATTER ELIGIBILITY GUIDANCE, 84 Fed. Reg. 50, 57 (Jan. 7, 2019) (the “2019 Revised Guidance”). That guidance revised the USPTO’s examination procedure with respect to the first step of the Alice framework by (1) “[p]roviding groupings of subject matter that [are] considered an abstract idea”; and (2) clarifying that a claim is not “directed to” a judicial exception if the judicial exception is integrated into a practical application of that exception. Id. at 50. The 2019 Revised Guidance, by its terms, applies to all applications, and to all patents resulting from applications, filed before, on, or after January 7, 2019. Id.2 We have reviewed the eligibility of the pending claims in accordance with the Supreme Court’s two-step framework and through the lens of the 2019 Revised Guidance, but we are not persuaded the Examiner erred in concluding that the pending claims are directed to a judicial exception without significantly more. Step One of the Alice Framework (2019 Revised Guidance, Step 2A) The first step in the Alice framework, as mentioned above, is to determine whether the claims at issue are “directed to” a patent-ineligible 2 The 2019 Revised Guidance supersedes MANUAL OF PATENT EXAMINING PROCEDURE (“MPEP”) § 2106.04(II) and also supersedes all versions of the USPTO’s “Eligibility Quick Reference Sheet Identifying Abstract Ideas.” See 2019 Revised Guidance, 84 Fed. Reg. at 51 (“Eligibility-related guidance issued prior to the Ninth Edition, R-08.2017, of the MPEP (published Jan. 2018) should not be relied upon.”). Appeal 2019-006791 Application 14/704,776 6 concept, e.g., an abstract idea. Alice Corp., 573 U.S. at 217. This first step, as set forth in the 2019 Revised Guidance (i.e., Step 2A), is a two-prong test; in Step 2A, Prong 1, we look to whether the claim recites a judicial exception, e.g., one of the following three groupings of abstract ideas: (1) mathematical concepts; (2) certain methods of organizing human activity, e.g., fundamental economic principles or practices, commercial or legal interactions; and (3) mental processes. 2019 Revised Guidance, 84 Fed. Reg. at 54. If so, we next consider whether the claim includes additional elements, beyond the judicial exception, that “integrate the [judicial] exception into a practical application,” i.e., that apply, rely on, or use the judicial exception in a manner that imposes a meaningful limit on the judicial exception, such that the claim is more than a drafting effort designed to monopolize the judicial exception (“Step 2A, Prong 2”). Id. at 54–55. Only if the claim (1) recites a judicial exception and (2) does not integrate that exception into a practical application do we conclude that the claim is “directed to” the judicial exception, e.g., an abstract idea. The Federal Circuit has explained that “the ‘directed to’ inquiry applies a stage-one filter to claims, considered in light of the specification, based on whether ‘their character as a whole is directed to excluded subject matter.’” Enfish, LLC v. Microsoft Corp., 822 F.3d 1327, 1335 (Fed. Cir. 2016) (quoting Internet Patents Corp. v. Active Network, Inc., 790 F.3d 1343, 1346 (Fed. Cir. 2015)). It asks whether the focus of the claims is on a specific improvement in relevant technology or on a process that itself qualifies as an “abstract idea” for which computers are invoked merely as a tool. See id. at 1335–36. Here, it is clear from the Specification (including Appeal 2019-006791 Application 14/704,776 7 the claim language) that the focus of claim 1 is on an abstract idea, and not on any improvement to technology, as argued by Appellant. The Specification is entitled “DELAYED ORDER DELIVERY FULFILLMENT,” and states that the embodiments “pertain to order fulfillment, logistics, and delivery techniques for items of commerce.” Spec. ¶ 1. The Specification in the Abstract section describes the invention as: Techniques and system configurations for order tracking and delivery fulfillment in an electronic commerce setting is described herein. In one example, a shipment that originates from a distribution center of a retailer is identified for delay (e.g., a delayed shipment in transit via a national carrier). The delayed shipment is replaced with a substitute shipment from inventory at an in-store location of the retailer. The substitute shipment is selected from an in-store location of the retailer based on proximity to the shipping destination, and is delivered via courier or agent to meet or precede a promised delivery date. The delayed shipment is then intercepted or redirected to the shipping source, the in-store location, or a distribution center. Related techniques for the management, processing, and tracking of data and information associated with substitute shipments are further described herein. The claimed invention is intended to minimize delays in delivery of goods which could stem from adverse weather conditions, delivery network interruptions, or other factors out of the seller’s control.3 3 “Customers increasingly want more information and control over their delivery options, especially when making gift-based orders in advance of birthdays, holidays, or other pre-determined delivery dates. Various processes exist to allow sellers to track the status of deliveries, and to allow the seller to determine whether certain deliveries are likely to be delayed or unable to meet a pre-determined delivery date. However, existing tracking processes are typically limited to collecting information about the delayed delivery and providing only a status update or apology to affected customers. Such information is unlikely to satisfy an expectant customer if Appeal 2019-006791 Application 14/704,776 8 To that end, claim 1 recites “[a] method for processing data in a delayed order delivery fulfillment scenario,” comprising: (a) collecting data for a plurality of shipments; (b) calculating, from the data for the plurality of shipments, that a delay condition has occurred for a shipment of a first product instance of a product, the delay condition indicating that at least one shipment is undeliverable to a destination by a target delivery date; (c) searching inventories of in-store locations to determine a plurality of in- store locations that have an instance of the product stocked in inventory, and distances from each of the plurality of in-store locations to the destination; (d) selecting a particular in-store location of the plurality of in-store locations that have an instance of the product stocked in inventory, the selecting of the particular in-store location based on proximity of the particular in-store location to the destination, the particular in-store location having a shortest distance among the distances; (e) identifying a second product instance stocked in inventory of the particular in-store location to fulfill delivery of the product in a replacement shipment to the destination; (f) creating data that identifies at least one shipment option for a substitute delivery of the second product instance in the replacement shipment, the substitute delivery of the second product instance scheduled to occur from the inventory at the particular in-store location to the destination by the target delivery date; (g) creating data including delivery instruction to trigger performance of the substitute delivery of the second product instance in the the order is unable to be fulfilled prior to the holiday or previously promised delivery date. Thus, if a delivery delay or cancellation occurs, the seller may be blamed for the failure (even if the reason for the delay is outside of the seller's control).” Spec. ¶ 3. Appeal 2019-006791 Application 14/704,776 9 replacement shipment, wherein the data including the delivery instruction to trigger performance of the substitute delivery of the replacement shipment to the destination indicates that the substitute delivery is to be performed via a selected shipment option of the identified at least one shipment option; and (h) sending a notification including an identification of the second product instance stocked in the inventory of the particular in-store location and the selected shipment option to the particular in-store location, (i) wherein in response to the notification, the particular instore location generates the delivery instruction or prints the electronic delivery instruction on a shipping label. See Claim 1 supra. Under the broadest reasonable interpretation, steps b–h recite a method of organizing human activity because claim 1 outlines actions a retailer would take upon determining a delay during the shipment of a product to identify a replacement product in inventory at a location closest to the destination, and make the necessary arrangements for delivery of the replacement product by the target delivery date. See Spec. ¶¶ 69–70. For example, in step (b) a retailer identifies which of the orders are at risk of not being delivered by the target delivery date, such that delays are determined based on an evaluation of the delay criterion relative to the projected or promised in-hand date estimated at the time of the sale or order fulfilment. See Spec. ¶ 29. Steps (c) and (d) recite actions taken by a retailer to search inventories of in-store locations and distances to determine which locations have the product in inventory and select a particular store with the shortest distance to the destination that has the product in stock. Steps (e)–(h) recite identifying the second product in stock, identifying a shipment option for the delivery of the replacement shipment, providing instructions and sending a Appeal 2019-006791 Application 14/704,776 10 notification for performance of the substitute delivery to the particular store location. Consequently, these steps involve arranging the timely delivery of an order––which is a commercial interaction and part of sales activity, and managing personal behavior, for example of a retailer fulfilling an order by following rules and instructions. See Spec. ¶¶ 69–70 (describing a delayed order replacement workflow by applying rules and instructions). Moreover, the steps discussed above can be performed mentally using a pen and paper. See Revised Guidance 84 Fed. Reg. at 52 (Mental processes-concepts performed in the human mind (including an observation, evaluaton, judgment, opinion”)). These steps can be performed by a retailor observing and evaluating the inventory of a plurality of locations and determining the closest location to the delivery destination that has the substitute product in stock, and notifying the selected location to fulfill substitute delivery by the targeted delivery date. Accordingly, we conclude steps b–h recite an abstract idea. Having concluded that claim 1 recites a judicial exception, i.e., an abstract idea (Step 2A, Prong 1), we next consider whether the claim recites additonal elements that integrate the judicial exception into a practical application (Step 2A, Prong 2). 2019 Revised Guidance, 84 Fed. Reg. at 51. When a claim recites a judicial exception and fails to integrate the exception into a practical application, the claim is “directed to” the judicial exception. Id. Claim 1 may integrate the judicial exception when, for example, it reflects an improvement to technology or a technical field. Id at 55. The additional elements recited in claim 1 supra are italicized. These additional elements are “electronically”; “electronic”; and “device,” all of which are Appeal 2019-006791 Application 14/704,776 11 disclosed in the Specification at a high degree of generality, i.e., as generic computer components (see Spec. ¶¶ 64, 78). For example, the Specification indicates that such components include a processor, memory, operating system, and user input interface to interact, control, or operate the following data stores, hardware-implemented modules, network and associated devices, systems, and implementations. Specifically, the computing system 800 may be implemented within one or a plurality of computer system devices, at one or multiple locations, and may be implemented in connection with features of distributed, remote, or cloud-based processing functions. Spec. ¶ 64. These additional elements do no more than generally link the use of the abstract idea to a particular technological environment or field of use. See Spec. 81 (describing “a communications network 1128 using a transmission medium via the network interface device 1120 utilizing any one of a number of well-known transfer protocols (e.g., HTTP)”). Further, the recitation of collecting data on the respective delivery statuses of the shipments in step (a) is mere data gathering, and printing the delivery instruction on a shipping label in step (i) is also insignificant extra- solution activity that does not meaningfully limit to the claim. See MPEP § 2106.05 (g) (“An example of post-solution activity is an element that is not integrated into the claim as a whole, e.g., a printer that is used to output a report of fraudulent transactions, which is recited in a claim to a computer programmed to analyze and manipulate information about credit card transactions in order to detect whether the transactions were fraudulent.”). As such, we disagree with Appellant’s contention that the “claims clearly integrate the Examiner’s alleged judicial exception (‘scheduling substituted delivery for shipment delays’) into a practical application of technology and an improvement in multiple technical fields.” Appeal Br. 12 (citing Spec. ¶ Appeal 2019-006791 Application 14/704,776 12 18); Reply Br. 4. All the improvements disclosed are either naturally derived from automation (e.g., “uses of data to manage and automate delivery processes”) or reflected in the abstract idea (e.g., cost reduction and improved customer experiences) because there is no indication in the Specification of, nor does Appellant point to, any such improvements and how any such improvements are implemented in this process. The claimed “computer system,” which only appears in the preamble of claim 1, comprises a generic computer processor, but none of the steps performed in claim 1 (besides step (h) of sending a notification to a device), require any computing element, and thus, cannot reflect any improvement in compter capabilities or technology. The focus of the invention is not on an improvement in computers as tools but on improving an abstract idea that uses the properties and capabilities of computers as tools. Although the use of workflows may result in cost reduction and improved customer experiences (see Appeal Br. 12–13 (quoting Spec. ¶ 18)), they do not suggest or specifically point to an improvement in the functioning of a computer or an improvement to other technology or technical field and therefore these aspects of the invention do not integrate the judicial exception into a practical application. See Ans. 5. We are not apprised of any operation recited in claim 1 that invokes any assertedly inventive programming, requires any specialized computer hardware or other inventive computer components, i.e., a particular machine, or that the claimed invention is implemented using other than generic computer components to perform generic computer functions. See DDR Holdings, 773 F.3d at 1256 (“[A]fter Alice, there can remain no doubt: Appeal 2019-006791 Application 14/704,776 13 recitation of generic computer limitations does not make an otherwise ineligible claim patent-eligible.”). As discussed above, step (a) and (i) add insignificant extra-solution activity to the judicial exception (i.e., post- solution activity), which does not meaningfully limit the claim. We find no indication in the Specification that the claimed invention effects a transformation or reduction of a particular article to a different state or thing. Nor do we find anything of record that attributes an improvement in computer technology and/or functionality to the claimed invention or that otherwise indicates that the claimed invention integrates the abstract idea into a “practical application,” as that phrase is used in the 2019 Revised Guidance.4 We conclude, for the reasons outlined above, that claim 1 recites an abstract idea, and the additional elements recited in the claim are no more than generic components used as tools to perform the recited abstract idea. As such, they do not integrate the abstract idea into a practical application. See Alice Corp., 573 U.S. at 223–24 (“[W]holly generic computer implementation is not generally the sort of ‘additional featur[e]’ that provides any ‘practical assurance that the process is more than a drafting effort designed to monopolize the [abstract idea] itself.’”) (alterations in original) (quoting Mayo, 566 U.S. at 77). 4 The2019 Revised Guidance references MPEP § 2106.05(a)–(c) and (e) in describing the considerations that are indicative that an additional element or combination of elements integrates the judicial exception, e.g., the abstract idea, into a practical application. 2019 Revised Guidance, 84 Fed. Reg. at 55. If the recited judicial exception is integrated into a practical application, as determined under one or more of these MPEP sections, the claim is not “directed to” the judicial exception. Appeal 2019-006791 Application 14/704,776 14 Accordingly, we agree with the Examiner that claim 1 is directed to an abstract idea. Step Two of the Alice Framework (2019 Revised Guidance, Step 2B) Having determined under step one of the Alice framework that claim 1 is directed to an abstract idea, we next consider under Step 2B of the 2019 Revised Guidance, the second step of the Alice framework, whether claim 1 includes additional elements or a combination of elements that provides an “inventive concept,” i.e., whether the additional elements amount to “significantly more” than the judicial exception itself. 2019 Revised Guidance, 84 Fed. Reg. at 56. Besides the insignificant extra-solution activity recited in steps (a) and (i), the only additional elements recited beyond the abstract idea are “a computer system comprising at least one hardware processor” recited in the preamble of claim 1, and the terms “electronically”; “electronic”; “device” in steps (d), (g), and (h), respectively. The terms “electronic” and “electronically” amount to merely indicating a field of use or technological environment in which to apply a judicial exception, which do not amount to significantly more than the exception itself. Diamond v. Diehr, 450 U.S. 175, 192 (1981) (A “judicial exception cannot be made eligible ‘simply by having the applicant acquiesce to limiting the reach of the patent for the formula to a particular technological use.’”); see also Affinity Labs of Texas v. DirecTV, LLC, 838 F.3d 1253 (Fed. Cir. 2016). The “device” in step (h) does not amount to an inventive concept because a generic computer used to perform a generic computer function of “sending a notification” (Final Act. 5–6; see Ans. 10 ) is well-understood, routine, or conventional — a Appeal 2019-006791 Application 14/704,776 15 determination fully consistent with the Specification (see Spec. ¶¶ 64, 78–81). The remaining steps in claim 1 are directed to the abstract idea and lack any additional elements to ensure the claim amounts to significantly more. Thus, the additional elements, individually and in combination, do not provide an inventive concept. Contrary to Appellant’s contention in reference to Berkheimer (Appeal Br. 15), the Federal Circuit, in accordance with Alice, has “repeatedly recognized the absence of a genuine dispute as to eligibility” where claims have been defended as involving an inventive concept based “merely on the idea of using existing computers or the Internet to carry out conventional processes, with no alteration of computer functionality.” Berkheimer v. HP, Inc., 890 F.3d 1369, 1373 (Fed. Cir. 2018) (Moore, J., concurring); see also BSG Tech, 899 F.3d at 1291 (“BSG Tech does not argue that other, non-abstract features of the claimed inventions, alone or in combination, are not well-understood, routine and conventional database structures and activities. Accordingly, the district court did not err in determining that the asserted claims lack an inventive concept.”). Also, contrary to Appellant’s contention (see Appeal Br. 14), neither a finding of novelty nor a non-obviousness determination automatically leads to the conclusion that the claimed subject matter is patent eligible. Although the second step in the Alice framework is termed a search for an “inventive concept,” the analysis is not an evaluation of novelty or non-obviousness, but rather, a search for “an element or combination of elements that is ‘sufficient to ensure that the patent in practice amounts to significantly more than a patent upon the [ineligible concept] itself.’” Alice Corp., 573 U.S. at 217–18. “Groundbreaking, innovative, or even brilliant discovery does not Appeal 2019-006791 Application 14/704,776 16 by itself satisfy the § 101 inquiry.” Ass’n for Molecular Pathology v. Myriad Genetics, Inc., 569 U.S. 576, 591 (2013). A novel and non-obvious claim directed to a purely abstract idea is, nonetheless, patent ineligible. See Mayo, 566 U.S. at 90; see also. Diehr, 450 U.S. at 188–89 (“The ‘novelty’ of any element or steps in a process, or even of the process itself, is of no relevance in determining whether the subject matter of a claim falls within the § 101 categories of possibly patentable subject matter.”). We are not persuaded, on the present record, that the Examiner erred in rejecting independent claim 1 under 35 U.S.C. § 101. Accordingly, we sustain the rejection of independent claim 1 under 35 U.S.C. § 101, including claims 2–3, 5–12, and 14–20 which fall with claim 1. CONCLUSION The rejection of claims 1–3, 5–12, and 14–20 under 35 U.S.C. § 101 is AFFIRMED Claims Rejected 35 U.S.C. § Reference(s)/Basis Affirmed Reversed 1–3, 5–12, 14–20 101 Eligibility 1–3, 5–12, 14–20 No time period for taking any subsequent action in connection with this appeal may be extended under 37 C.F.R. § 1.136(a). See 37 C.F.R. § 1.136(a)(1)(iv). AFFIRMED Copy with citationCopy as parenthetical citation