- PTAB · Dec 18, 2025 · IPR2025-01071 · APJ Benjamin D M Wood · IPR · Institution
The Board instituted IPR of claims 1–7, 12, 14, and 25 because Petitioner showed a reasonable likelihood of prevailing on its § 103 obviousness challenge over Bassompiere.
RulingsInstitution decision- PTAB / AIA Trials › Institution threshold (reasonable likelihood / more likely than not)InstitutedInstituted
“We have authority under 35 U.S.C. § 314, which provides that an inter partes review may not be instituted “unless . . . there is a reasonable likelihood that the petitioner would prevail with respect to at least 1 of the claims challenged in the petition.” 35 U.S.C. § 314(a). On the preliminary record before us, we determine that Petitioner has satisfied this threshold requirement, and therefore we institute inter partes review of claims 1–7, 12, 14, and 25 of the ’687 patent.” slip op. at 2
- Skill levelSkill level petitioner adoptedDecided for petitioner
“Patent Owner does not offer any reason why we should deviate from the Board’s determinations in the prior IPRs that one of ordinary skill in the art would have had knowledge of Kalman filters and quaternion mathematics. Nor are we aware of any such reason. On the contrary, the Board’s prior determinations are consistent with the level of ordinary skill reflected by prior art of record. See Okajima v. Bourdeau, 261 F.3d 1350, 1355 (Fed. Cir. 2001); In re GPAC Inc., 57 F.3d 1573, 1579 (Fed. Cir. 1995); In re Oelrich, 579 F.2d 86, 91 (CCPA 1978). Bassompiere, for example, teaches using a data merging algorithm that is, “[a]dvantageously,” extended Kalman filtering. Ex. 1006, 4:17. Bassompiere also teaches using quaternions to determine a device’s pitch and roll about a horizontal reference frame. Id. at 6:3–8, 20:10–21:1. Patent Owner argues that Dr. Sarrafzadeh’s testimony regarding the level of skill in the art in this proceeding contradicts his testimony in the prior IPRs, which did not include knowledge of Kalman filters and quaternion mathematics in his definition of the level of ordinary skill in the art. Prelim. Resp. 24–26. Patent Owner asserts that this contradiction “undermin[es] his credibility.” Id. at 26. We disagree. The testimony Dr. Sarrafzadeh provided in the earlier IPRs obviously preceded the Board’s determinations in those proceedings that, on the whole record, including the testimony of then-Patent Owner’s declarant, the level of ordinary skill included knowledge of Kalman Filters and quaternions. Dr. Sarrafzadeh’s testimony in this proceeding reasonably aligns with those determinations. Accordingly, we adopt Petitioner’s definition of the level of ordinary skill in the art for purposes of this Decision.” slip op. at 12
- Claim Construction › Threshold & procedure › Whether a term needs construction (O2 Micro)No construction neededNot reached
“The parties agree that the claimed “spatial reference frame” is associated with a device, has its origin at the same point in the device, and has axes that are always fixed with respect to the device. The only disagreement is whether that device is a “3D pointing device” or an “electronic device.” The Specification indicates that “electronic device” encompasses 3D pointing devices as well as, e.g., smartphones and navigation equipment, and therefore is the broader term. Ex. 1001, 13:20– 23. At this stage of the proceeding, we determine that the threshold question of institution can be decided under either construction, because Patent Owner does not dispute that the primary asserted reference, Bassompiere, teaches a “spatial reference frame” associated with a 3D pointing device. Pet. 25–27. Therefore, at this stage of the proceeding, we decline to resolve the parties’ dispute. See Vivid Techs., Inc. v. Am. Sci. & Eng'g, Inc., 200 F.3d 795, 803 (Fed. Cir. 1999) (“[O]nly those [claim] terms need be construed that are in controversy, and only to the extent necessary to resolve the controversy.”); Nidec Motor Corp. v. Zhongshan Broad Ocean Motor Co., 868 F.3d 1013, 1017 (Fed. Cir. 2017) (approving Board decision not to construe claim language where the construction is not material to the dispute). 2. “predicted axial accelerations” Petitioner does not propose a construction for “predicted axial accelerations,” but, in the concurrent California Litigation, contends that it should be accorded its “plain and ordinary meaning.” Ex. 2007, 3. In subsequent briefing that will be discussed more fully below, Petitioner asserts that its declarant, Dr. Sarrafzadeh, “applied the ‘plain and ordinary’ meaning for all claim terms, including the ‘predicted axial accelerations’ term,” in this proceeding. Paper 14, 1. Petitioner also submits in that briefing that “the term ‘axial acceleration’ (whether predicted or measured) . . . ordinarily encompasses three types of acceleration,” i.e., “linear, centrifugal, and gravitational.” Id. at 3, 4. Patent Owner contends that “predicted axial accelerations” should be construed as “[g]ravitational acceleration along the electronic device’s axes derived from the current quaternion.” Prelim. Resp. 18. Patent Owner asserts that “[t]he claims and specification consistently define ‘predicted axial accelerations’ as gravitational accelerations along the device’s axes at time T, derived from the current quaternion.” Id. (citing Ex. 1001, claim 1, 17:18–30, 17:45–52). Patent Owner further submits that “because ‘predicted axial accelerations’ are computed from the current quaternion they only contain gravitational accelerations along the device’s axes.” Id. at 19 (citing Ex. 2023 ¶ 23). Here too, the threshold question of institution can be decided without” slip op. at 14
- BurdenDecided for petitioner
“We disagree with Patent Owner’s characterization. The teaching to use quaternions instead of Euler angles comes from Bassompiere, not Dr. Sarrafzadeh. See Ex. 1006, 20:10–11 (“A first variant embodiment consists in replacing the angles of torsion θ and ψ by a quaternion formulation of the same torsion.”). Rather than supplying a missing limitation, we understand Dr. Sarrafzadeh to be explaining how a person of ordinary skill in the art would have implemented Bassompiere’s teaching to use quaternions instead of Euler angles given that person’s knowledge of quaternion mathematics. Patent Owner also argues that “switching from Euler angles to quaternions is not a routine substitution but requires the reengineering of the EKF.” Prelim. Resp. 28. Patent Owner similarly contends that Dr. Sarrafzadeh “devotes nearly twenty pages of his declaration to rewriting Bassompiere’s Euler-based equations ‘in quaternion form,’ and explaining how to convert them back to Euler angles,” and notes that “[a]s other researchers in the field have confirmed, ‘[w]hile implementing orientation tracking using quaternions provides advantages like avoiding gimbal lock, it is significantly more complex than the Kalman filer using Euler angles.’” Prelim. Resp. 32 (citing Ex. 1002, 31–51; quoting Ex. 2027, 1). Patent Owner thus contends that replacing Euler angles with quaternions “is not a ‘trivial’ substitution.” Id. at 32. But Petitioner does not appear to be arguing that replacing Euler angles with quaternions would have been “trivial” or simple, only that doing so was taught by Bassompiere and within the knowledge and capabilities of a person of ordinary skill in the art. Pet. 33–34. We determined above that a skilled artisan had knowledge of extended Kalman filters and quaternion mathematics, and we are required to consider the knowledge and capabilities of a person of ordinary skill in our analysis. Further, at this preliminary stage, Patent Owner’s assertion that the Euler angle/quaternion switch would not have been a routine substitution is supported only with attorney argument, which is entitled to no weight. Icon Health & Fitness, Inc. v. Strava, Inc. 849 F.3d 1034, 1043 (Fed. Cir. 2017). As such, it does not outweigh Dr. Sarrafzadeh’s contrary testimony. See, e.g., Ex. 1002 ¶ 56.” slip op. at 29
Claim constructioncites Phillips · KSR · GrahamPatents in suitUS 11,698,687 - PTAB · Dec 17, 2025 · IPR2025-01023 · APJ Benjamin D M Wood · IPR · Institution
The Board instituted IPR on all asserted grounds against claims 1, 3, 7, and 9, finding a reasonable likelihood that Petitioner would prevail on at least one challenged claim.
RulingsInstitution decision- PTAB / AIA Trials › Institution threshold (reasonable likelihood / more likely than not)InstitutedInstituted
“c. Conclusion as to Claim 1 Having reviewed the record and the parties’ arguments, we determine that Petitioner has a reasonable likelihood of prevailing with respect to claim 1, and therefore has satisfied the threshold requirement for institution of inter partes review on the basis of Ground 1. 3. Claims 3, 7, and 9 Petitioner contends that Bassompiere teaches the limitations of claim 3, 7, and 9, and supports its contentions with citations to Bassompiere and to Dr. Sharrafzadeh’s declaration. Pet. 57–63. At this stage of the proceeding, Patent Owner does not raise any arguments specifically directed to these claims. “When instituting inter partes review, the Board will authorize the review to proceed on all of the challenged claims and on all grounds of unpatentability asserted for each claim.” 37 C.F.R. § 42.108(a). We must “either (1) institute as to all claims challenged in the petition and on all grounds in the petition, or (2) institute on no claims and deny institution.” CTPG at 5–6, 64; see also PGS Geophysical AS v. Iancu, 891 F.3d 1354, 1359–60 (Fed. Cir. 2018) (stating a decision to institute is “a simple yes-orno institution choice respecting a petition, embracing all challenges included in the petition”). Thus, because we have decided to grant institution on Ground 1 with respect to claim 1, we must do the same for claims 3, 7, and 9.” slip op. at 38
- Skill levelSkill level petitioner adoptedDecided for petitioner
“Patent Owner does not offer any reason why we should deviate from the Board’s determinations in the prior IPRs that one of ordinary skill in the art would have had knowledge of Kalman filters and quaternion mathematics. Nor are we aware of any such reason. On the contrary, the Board’s prior determinations are consistent with the level of ordinary skill reflected by prior art of record. See Okajima v. Bourdeau, 261 F.3d 1350, 1355 (Fed. Cir. 2001); In re GPAC Inc., 57 F.3d 1573, 1579 (Fed. Cir. 1995); In re Oelrich, 579 F.2d 86, 91 (CCPA 1978). Bassompiere, for example, teaches using a data merging algorithm that is, “[a]dvantageously,” extended Kalman filtering. Ex. 1006, 4:17. Bassompiere also teaches using quaternions to determine a device’s pitch and roll about a horizontal reference frame. Id. at 6:3–8, 20:10–21:1. Nasiri teaches that quaternions can be used to represent a device’s “orientation in space.” Ex. 1008, 30:27– 30. Patent Owner argues that Dr. Sarrafzadeh’s testimony regarding the level of skill in the art in this proceeding contradicts his testimony in the prior IPRs, which did not include knowledge of Kalman filters and quaternion mathematics in his definition of the level of ordinary skill in the art. Prelim. Resp. 24–26. Patent Owner asserts that this contradiction “undermin[es] his credibility.” Id. at 26. We disagree. The testimony Dr. Sarrafzadeh provided in the earlier IPRs obviously preceded the Board’s determinations in those proceedings that, on the whole record, including the testimony of then-Patent Owner’s declarant, the level of ordinary skill included knowledge of Kalman Filters and quaternions. Dr. Sarrafzadeh’s testimony in this proceeding reasonably aligns with those determinations. Accordingly, for the above reasons, we adopt Petitioner’s definition of the level of ordinary skill in the art for purposes of this Decision.” slip op. at 13
- Expert testimonyPetitioner expert creditedDecided for petitioner
“We disagree with Patent Owner’s characterization. The teaching to use quaternions instead of Euler angles comes from Bassompiere, not Dr. Sarrafzadeh. See Ex. 1006, 20:10–11 (“A first variant embodiment consists in replacing the angles of torsion θ and ψ by a quaternion formulation of the same torsion.”). Rather than supplying a missing limitation, we understand Dr. Sarrafzadeh to be explaining how a person of ordinary skill in the art would have implemented Bassompiere’s teaching to use quaternions instead of Euler angles given that person’s knowledge of quaternion mathematics. Patent Owner also argues that “switching from Euler angles to quaternions is not a routine substitution but requires the reengineering of the EKF.” Prelim. Resp. 28. Patent Owner similarly contends that Dr. Sarrafzadeh “devotes nearly twenty pages of his declaration to rewriting Bassompiere’s Euler-based equations ‘in quaternion form,’ and explaining how to convert them back to Euler angles,” and notes that “[a]s other researchers in the field have confirmed, ‘[w]hile implementing orientation tracking using quaternions provides advantages like avoiding gimbal lock, it is significantly more complex than the Kalman filer using Euler angles.’” Prelim. Resp. 32–33 (citing Ex. 1002, 31–51; quoting Ex. 2027, 1). Patent Owner thus contends that replacing Euler angles with quaternions “is not a ‘trivial’ substitution.” Id. at 33. But Petitioner does not appear to be arguing that replacing Euler angles with quaternions would have been “trivial” or simple, only that doing so was taught by Bassompiere and within the knowledge and capabilities of a person of ordinary skill in the art. We determined above that a skilled artisan had knowledge of extended Kalman filters and quaternion mathematics such knowledge, and we are required to consider the knowledge and capabilities of a person of ordinary skill in our analysis. Further, at this preliminary stage, Patent Owner’s assertion that the Euler angle/quaternion switch would not have been a routine substitution is supported only with attorney argument, which is entitled to no weight. Icon Health & Fitness, Inc. v. Strava, Inc. 849 F.3d 1034, 1043 (Fed. Cir. 2017). As such, it does not outweigh Dr. Sarrafzadeh’s contrary testimony. See, e.g., Ex. 1002 ¶ 56.” slip op. at 30
- Claim Construction › Threshold & procedure › Whether a term needs construction (O2 Micro)No construction neededNot reached
“The parties agree that the claimed “spatial reference frame” is associated with a device, has its origin at the same point in the device, and has axes that are always fixed with respect to the device. The only disagreement is whether that device is a “3D pointing device” or an “electronic device.” The Specification indicates that “electronic device” encompasses 3D pointing devices as well as, e.g., smartphones and navigation equipment, and therefore is the broader term. Ex. 1001, 8:35–39. At this stage of the proceeding, we determine that the threshold question of institution can be decided under either construction, because Patent Owner does not dispute that the primary asserted reference, Bassompiere, teaches a “spatial reference frame” associated with a 3D pointing device. Pet. 30–31. Therefore, at this stage of the proceeding, we decline to resolve the parties’ dispute. See Vivid Techs., Inc. v. Am. Sci. & Eng'g, Inc., 200 F.3d 795, 803 (Fed. Cir. 1999) (“[O]nly those [claim] terms need be construed that are in controversy, and only to the extent necessary to resolve the controversy.”); Nidec Motor Corp. v. Zhongshan Broad Ocean Motor Co., 868 F.3d 1013, 1017 (Fed. Cir. 2017) (approving Board decision not to construe claim language where the construction is not material to the dispute).” slip op. at 15
Claim construction§ 103 obviousnessDiscretionary denialcites Phillips · KSR · GrahamPatents in suitUS 10,852,846 - PTAB · Dec 12, 2025 · IPR2025-01327 · APJ Sheila F Mcshane · IPR · Institution
The Board instituted IPR of claims 1–19 on all asserted grounds, finding a reasonable likelihood of prevailing on the Schwan-Lee and Schwan-Lee-Strickland obviousness grounds.
RulingsInstitution decision- PTAB / AIA Trials › Institution threshold (reasonable likelihood / more likely than not)InstitutedInstituted
“partes review. See 35 U.S.C. § 314; 37 C.F.R. § 42.4(a). Under 35 U.S.C. § 314(a), we may not authorize an inter partes review unless the information in the petition and the preliminary response “shows that there is a reasonable likelihood that the petitioner would prevail with respect to at least 1 of the claims challenged in the petition.” For the reasons stated below, we determine that Petitioner has established a reasonable likelihood that it would prevail with respect to at least one claim. We therefore institute inter partes review as to all of the challenged claims of the ’655 patent and all of the asserted grounds of unpatentability in the Petition.” slip op. at 2
- Skill levelSkill level petitioner adoptedDecided for petitioner
“III. ANALYSIS A. Level of Ordinary Skill in the Art Petitioner asserts that a person of ordinary skill in the art: would have had a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering, computer engineering, computer science, or equivalent, and two years of work experience with network devices and communication technologies. EX1003, ¶¶17–19. Additional education might compensate for less experience, and vice versa. Pet. 4 (citing Ex. 1003 ¶¶ 17–19).” slip op. at 6
- Claim Construction › Intrinsic evidence (Phillips canons) › Lexicography (patentee as own lexicographer)Term construed board ownDecided for petitioner
“The ’655 patent Specification states that: The topology data table 21 of the online server 20 is mainly recorded with a link data 49 between each of the P2P devices 41– 46 within the P2P device community. The link data 49 refers to the connection relationship between the P2P devices 41–46, which includes, but is not limited to, the connection structure, connection data and/or locations of connection. Ex. 1001, 4:51–57. On this preliminary record, we agree with Petitioner that the term “link data” is a “connection relationship between the P2P devices.” This meaning is consistent with the ordinary meaning of the term within the context of the claim, that is, “link data” means data on the links (connections) between each of the P2P devices, where the Specification provides a more fulsome meaning that the term includes, at least, “the connection structure, connection data and/or locations of connection.” See id. at 4:55–57. We invite the parties to provide additional briefing on the construction of this term during trial.” slip op. at 8
- Obviousness (§103) › Motivation to combine / reasonable expectation of successMotivation foundDecided for petitioner
“Lee discloses that the P2P overlay is generated with the overlay generation unit 220 that generates the P2P overlay by analyzing information regarding “the corresponding application service, the peer, and the network,” where the network information “may include a network topology, a maximum bandwidth, a current network usage, [and] a transmission delay time, and the like.” Ex. 1005 ¶ 54. We determine that this disclosure provides support for Mr. Lett’s testimony that “Lee describes techniques for changing an overlay in response to changing network characteristics,” which could be beneficial. Ex. 1003 ¶ 48. Accordingly, on this preliminary record, we find this evidence is sufficient to support a rationale to combine Schwan and Lee. See KSR, 550 U.S. at 401 (“[I]f a technique has been used to improve one device, and a person of ordinary skill in the art would recognize that it would improve similar devices in the same way, using the technique is obvious.”).” slip op. at 13
Claim construction§ 103 obviousnesscites Phillips · KSR · GrahamPatents in suitUS 9,727,655 - PTAB · Sep 30, 2025 · IPR2025-00618 · APJ Nabeel U Khan · IPR · Institution
The Board instituted IPR on claims 1–5, 7, 8, 12–15, 18, and 19 on both § 103 grounds, finding a reasonable likelihood that at least one claim under each ground is unpatentable.
RulingsInstitution decision- PTAB / AIA Trials › Institution threshold (reasonable likelihood / more likely than not)InstitutedInstituted
“An inter partes review may not be instituted “unless . . . the information presented in the petition . . . shows that there is a reasonable likelihood that the petitioner would prevail with respect to at least 1 of the claims challenged in the petition.” 35 U.S.C. § 314(a). Having considered the arguments and evidence presented by Petitioner and Patent Owner, we determine that Petitioner has demonstrated a reasonable likelihood of prevailing on at least one of the challenged claims of the ’823 patent. We institute inter partes review as to all the challenged claims of the ’823 patent on all the grounds of unpatentability set forth in the Petition.” slip op. at 2
- Skill levelSkill level petitioner adoptedDecided for petitioner
“Petitioner argues that a person of ordinary skill in the art (POSITA) “would have had a bachelor’s degree in computer science, computer engineering, or equivalent degree, and approximately three years of experience working in the computer science or engineering field.” Pet. 12 (citing Ex. 1003 ¶ 58). Petitioner further argues that “[a]dditional experience might substitute for less education and vice versa” and that “POSITAs in June 2013 would have been knowledgeable about the design and management of networked systems and virtualization technologies, and techniques.” Id. Patent Owner “does not contest Petitioner’s proposed definition” of a POSITA at this stage of the proceeding. Prelim. Resp. 17. For purposes of this Decision, we adopt Petitioner’s proposed level of ordinary skill because it is consistent with the level of skill in the art at the time of the invention as reflected by the ’823 patent and the cited prior art.” slip op. at 6
- Claim Construction › Threshold & procedure › Whether a term needs construction (O2 Micro)No construction neededOther
“given its plain and ordinary meaning in this proceeding, and that no specific claim construction of any claim term is required.” Pet. 10. Petitioner explains that the parties have proposed “different constructions for various claim terms pending in the Related Litigation” but that the Grounds “render the claims unpatentable under either party’s construction, and any reasonable construction, and thus the Board need not construe any term.” Id. at 10–11 (citing Ex. 1003 ¶ 367; Ex. 1070; Ex. 1071).2 Patent Owner does not expressly address claim construction in its Preliminary Response. We determine that, at this stage of the proceeding, no explicit constructions are required to resolve the dispute between the parties. A final determination as to claim construction will be made at the close of the proceeding, after any hearing, based on all the evidence of record. The parties are expected to assert all their claim construction arguments and evidence in the Petition, Patent Owner’s Response, Petitioner’s Reply, Patent Owner’s Sur-reply, or otherwise during trial, as permitted by our rules.” slip op. at 8
- Obviousness (§103) › Motivation to combine / reasonable expectation of successMotivation foundReasonable expectation foundInstituted
“E. Combination of Vasell, Alves, Rellermeyer, and Hall As explained above, Petitioner contends that the technical implementation details that were intended to implement Vasell’s teachings are described in Alves, Rellermeyer, and Hall. Pet. 36. Petitioner argues, therefore, that the motivation to modify Vasell to include features described in the other references is demonstrated by the references themselves. Id. at 36–37 (citing Ex. 1003 ¶¶ 375–376). For example, according to Petitioner, a POSITA would have been motivated to modify Vasell with Alves’ teaching of a centralized application repository for storing its distributed applications to provide increased scalability. Id. at 38, 39 (citing Ex. 1008, 263, 266; Ex. 1003 ¶¶ 378–379). Petitioner contends that a POSITA would have been motivated to modify Vasell with Rellermeyer’s management software to provide for load balancing, failover and elastic scalability. Id. at 38 (citing Ex. 1003 ¶ 380). Finally, Petitioner argues that a POSITA would have been motivated to modify Vasell with Hall’s management software that requires digital signatures for distributed applications to provide increased security for using third party applications. Id. at 38, 39 (citing Ex. 1003 ¶ 381). Patent Owner does not separately dispute Petitioner’s contention that a POSITA would have been motivated to combine Vasell, Alves, Rellermeyer, and Hall. to combine the prior art references and determine that Petitioner has established a reasonable likelihood that a person of ordinary skill in the art would have combined Vasell, Alves, Rellermeyer, and Hall with a reasonable expectation of success for the reasons provided by Petitioner.” slip op. at 12
Claim construction§ 103 obviousnesscites Phillips · KSR · GrahamPatents in suitUS 11,695,823 - PTAB · Jul 28, 2025 · IPR2025-00308 · APJ Aaron W Moore · IPR · Institution
The Board instituted IPR on claim 1, finding a reasonable likelihood it would be shown obvious over Darnell and Kim; it did not reach the Dasgupta and Kim ground.
RulingsInstitution decision- PTAB / AIA Trials › Institution threshold (reasonable likelihood / more likely than not)InstitutedInstituted
“An inter partes review may not be instituted “unless . . . there is a reasonable likelihood that the petitioner would prevail with respect to at least 1 of the claims challenged in the petition.” 35 U.S.C. § 314(a). Upon consideration of the Petition, the Preliminary Response, and the evidence of record, we determine that Petitioner has shown a reasonable likelihood that it will prevail in showing the unpatentability of at least one of the challenged claims. Accordingly, we institute an inter partes review.” slip op. at 2
- Skill levelSkill level petitioner adoptedDecided for petitioner
“Petitioner describes a person of ordinary skill in the art as a person having “a bachelor’s degree in computer science and two years’ experience in cloud computing or a similar field, or a master’s degree in computer science or similar field.” Pet. 8 (citing Ex. 1002 ¶¶ 1–55, 119–122). Patent Owner describes a person of ordinary skill in the art as a person having “a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering or computer science, and approximately 3 years of experience working with content management systems and graphical user interfaces; or a more advanced degree such a master’s or doctorate with proportionally less work experience.” Prelim. Resp. 14. Petitioner and Patent Owner’s descriptions of a person of ordinary skill are similar, although Patent Owner’s proposal is slightly more experienced. Both appear to be reasonably consistent with the subject matter of the ’068 patent. For purposes of this decision, we adopt Petitioner’s description, which is supported by the testimony of Petitioner’s declarant, Dr. Martin. See Ex. 1002 ¶ 121; see also Okajima v. Bourdeau, 261 F.3d 1350, 1355 (Fed. Cir. 2001); In re GPAC Inc., 57 F.3d 1573, 1579 (Fed. Cir. 1995). C.” slip op. at 7
- Claim Construction › Intrinsic evidence (Phillips canons) › Plain and ordinary meaning to a POSITATerm construed board ownDecided for petitioner
“Based on the current record, we credit Dr. Martin’s testimony and preliminarily determine that the ordinary and customary meaning of the term “real time” as it is used in the context of the ’068 patent means to provide or transmit content when it is available without significant delay. This, however, does not resolve the issue of whether, as Petitioner contends, the claims require that content must be streamed in “real time” to just a “master server,” or as Patent Owner contends, content must also be streamed in “real time” to a “master webpage.”” slip op. at 14
- Obviousness (§103) › Motivation to combine / reasonable expectation of successMotivation foundReasonable expectation foundDecided for petitioner
“1. Rationale to Combine Darnell and Kim Petitioner contends that “Darnell and Kim address similar problems of aggregating and presenting multiple feed sources to a user.” Pet. 15 (citing Ex. 1002 ¶ 390–391). Petitioner notes, for example, that “Darnell addresses ‘[l]ooking through a dense list of content items to locate items of interest,’ which is cumbersome for a user,” and Kim “similarly addresses the problem of viewing multiple pieces of fragmented content from news sources, blog entries, email, and the like in a ‘consuming experience having significant drawbacks.’” Pet. 15–16 (citing Ex. 1002 ¶ 391; Ex. 1004 ¶ 9; Ex. 1005 ¶ 1). Petitioner asserts that a person of ordinary skill in the art would have understood Kim’s teachings for aggregating news, blog entries, and email in a network computer and sending the feeds to a remote computer for display in a UI to be suitable for use with Darnell’s feed reader architecture, in which content feed sources are aggregated on a remote server instead of at the user device. Pet. 16 (citing Ex. 1005 ¶¶ 20–24; Ex. 1002 ¶ 391). Petitioner asserts that a person of ordinary skill in the art would have also been motivated to implement Kim’s identification of “traits” and the organization of the user interface based on those traits in Darnell’s feed aggregation system. Id., ¶ 392. A POSITA would have been further motivated to implement Kim’s feed application, email application, media application, and photo application using Darnell’s server system 104 rather than on user devices, because doing so would allow users to access personalized content feeds on any user device (e.g., phone, computer, tablet, etc.) instead of only on a single user device. Pet. 16–17 (citing Ex. 1002 ¶¶ 392–395). Petitioner also asserts that a person of ordinary skill in the art would have further understood Darnell and Kim to be compatible because they disclose content feed aggregators with a similar user experience—aggregating multiple content feeds from different sources into a unified user interface displayed on a user device. Darnell, Abstract, ¶¶ 8, 11–14, 30–32, 37–38, Fig. 1; Kim, Abstract, ¶¶ 20–23, 37, Fig. 1; Martin, ¶¶ 396-397. Thus, a POSITA would have been motivated to implement Kim’s additional feed types and feed processing on a server instead of the user device based on Darnell’s teachings.” slip op. at 21
Claim construction§ 103 obviousnesscites Phillips · KSR · GrahamPatents in suitUS 10,334,068 - PTAB · Jul 28, 2025 · IPR2025-00307 · APJ Kevin C Trock · IPR · Institution
The Board instituted IPR on claims 1–18 on all four § 103 grounds, finding a reasonable likelihood that claim 1 would have been obvious over Darnell and Kim.
RulingsInstitution decision- PTAB / AIA Trials › Institution threshold (reasonable likelihood / more likely than not)InstitutedInstituted
“An inter partes review may not be instituted “unless . . . there is a reasonable likelihood that the petitioner would prevail with respect to at least 1 of the claims challenged in the petition.” 35 U.S.C. § 314(a). Upon consideration of the Petition, the Preliminary Response, and the evidence of record, we determine that Petitioner has shown a reasonable likelihood that it would prevail in showing the unpatentability of at least one of the challenged claims. Accordingly, we institute an inter partes review.” slip op. at 2
- Settled expectationsDecided for patent owner
“or “Petition”), to institute an inter partes review of claims 1–18 (the “challenged claims”) of U.S. Patent No. 9,729,658 B2 (Ex. 1001, “the ’658 patent”). On March 28, 2025, the Board issued a notice extending the deadline for discretion briefing pursuant to the bifurcated discretionary denial review process that applies to proceedings with a patent owner preliminary response due after March 26, 2025.1 Paper 10. On May 1, 2025, RazDog Holdings LLC (“Patent Owner”) timely filed a Preliminary Response, Paper 12 (“Prelim. Resp.”). Patent Owner filed a request for discretionary denial. Paper 11. Petitioner filed an opposition to Patent Owner’s request for discretionary denial. Paper 13. On May 16, 2025, the Acting Director issued a decision denying Patent Owner’s request for discretionary denial and referring the petition to the Board. Paper 18.” slip op. at 2
- Claim Construction › Intrinsic evidence (Phillips canons) › Plain and ordinary meaning to a POSITATerm construed board ownDecided for petitioner
“Based on the current record, we credit Dr. Martin’s testimony and preliminarily determine that the ordinary and customary meaning of the term “real time” as it is used in the context of the ’658 patent means to provide or transmit content when it is available without significant delay. This, however, does not resolve the issue of whether, as Petitioner contends, the claims require that content must be streamed in “real time” to just a “master server,” or as Patent Owner contends, content must also be streamed in “real time” to a “master webpage.”” slip op. at 15
- Obviousness (§103) › Motivation to combine / reasonable expectation of successMotivation foundReasonable expectation foundDecided for petitioner
“1. Rationale to Combine Darnell and Kim Petitioner contends that “Darnell and Kim address similar problems of aggregating and presenting multiple feed sources to users.” Pet. 13 (citing Ex. 1002 ¶ 146). Petitioner notes, for example, that “Darnell addresses ‘[l]ooking through a dense list of content items to locate items of interest,’ which is cumbersome for users,” and Kim “similarly addresses the problem of viewing multiple pieces of fragmented content from news sources, blog entries, email, and the like in a ‘consuming experience having significant drawbacks.’” Pat. 13–14 (citing Ex. 1002 ¶ 146; Ex. 1004 ¶ 9; Ex. 1005 ¶ 1). Petitioner asserts that a person of ordinary skill in the art would have understood Kim’s teachings for aggregating news, blog entries, and email in a network computer and sending the feeds to a remote computer for display in a UI to be suitable for use with Darnell’s feed reader architecture, in which content feed sources are aggregated on a remote server instead of at the user device. Pet. 14 (citing Ex. 1005 ¶¶ 20–24; Ex. 1002 ¶ 146). Petitioner asserts that a person of ordinary skill in the art would have also been motivated to implement Kim’s identification of “traits” and the organization of the UI based on those traits in Darnell’s feed aggregation system. Id., ¶147. POSITAs would have been further motivated to implement Kim’s feed application, email application, media application, and photo application using Darnell’s server system 104 rather than on user devices, because doing so would allow users to access personalized content feeds on any device (e.g., phone, computer, tablet, etc.) instead of only on a single device. Pet. 14–15 (citing Ex. 1002 ¶¶ 147–150). Petitioner also asserts that a person of ordinary skill in the art would have further understood Darnell’s and Kim’s compatibility because they disclose content feed aggregators with a similar user experience—aggregating multiple content feeds from different sources into a unified UI displayed on user devices. Darnell, Abstract, ¶¶ 8, 11–14, 30–32, 37–38, Fig. 1; Kim, Abstract, ¶¶ 20–23, 37, Fig. 1; Martin, ¶¶ 151–152. Thus, POSITAs would have been motivated to implement Kim’s additional feed types and feed processing on a server instead of user devices based on Darnell’s teachings.” slip op. at 23
Claim construction§ 103 obviousnessDiscretionary denialcites Phillips · KSR · GrahamPatents in suitUS 9,729,658 - PTAB · Jun 13, 2025 · IPR2025-00351 · APJ Beth Z Shaw · IPR · Institution
The Board instituted IPR of claims 1–26 on all grounds, finding a reasonable likelihood that Petitioner would prevail on at least one claim.
RulingsInstitution decision- PTAB / AIA Trials › Discretionary denial › Fintiv (parallel litigation)Decided for petitioner
“A district court stay of the litigation pending resolution of the PTAB trial allays concerns about inefficiency and duplication of efforts.” Fintiv Order 6. That is the case here. Thus, the first Fintiv factor strongly weighs against exercising the authority to deny institution. Id. Under the second Fintiv factor, the proximity of the court’s trial date to the Board’s projected statutory deadline for a final written decision weighs against exercising our authority to deny institution because there is no trial date scheduled. Id. at 9; see Ex. 1031, 3. slip op. at 8
- PTAB / AIA Trials › Institution threshold (reasonable likelihood / more likely than not)InstitutedInstituted
“To institute an inter partes review, we must determine “that there is a reasonable likelihood that the petitioner would prevail with respect to at least 1 of the claims challenged in the petition.” 35 U.S.C. § 314(a). The Board, however, has discretion to deny a petition even when a petitioner meets that threshold. Id.; see, e.g., Cuozzo Speed Techs., LLC v. Lee, 136 S. Ct. 2131, 2140 (2016) (“[T]he agency’s decision to deny a petition is a matter committed to the Patent Office’s discretion.”). For the reasons that follow, we grant institution of inter partes review.” slip op. at 2
- Skill levelOther
“have a bachelor’s or equivalent degree in computer science or a related field and at least 2 years of experience in multimedia processing or delivery using internet protocols.” Pet. 10 (citing Ex. 1002 ¶¶ 67–68). Petitioner further states that “a person with less formal education but more experience, or more formal education but less experience, could have also met the relevant standard for a POSITA.” Id. Patent Owner submits a similar definition (see Prelim. Resp. 13–14), but states that a POSITA “would understand that . . . the subject of the patent is a software-based solution to broadcasting multimedia streams, and the skillset and expertise in hardware-based systems would not make one knowledgeable about software-based systems.” Prelim. Resp. 13–14. We determine that no express finding is necessary, on the present record, and that the level of ordinary skill in the art is reflected by the prior art of record. See Okajima v. Bourdeau, 261 F.3d 1350, 1355 (Fed. Cir. 2001); In re GPAC Inc., 57 F.3d 1573, 1579 (Fed. Cir. 1995); In re Oelrich, 579 F.2d 86, 91 (CCPA 1978). The difference in how each party characterizes a POSITA’s work experience does not change our analysis or conclusions based on the present record. Should Patent Owner dispute Petitioner’s definition during trial, we encourage Patent Owner to explain how a software-focused definition would affect any obviousness analysis in our final written decision.” slip op. at 10
- Novelty / Anticipation (§102) › Anticipation standard (single reference, every element)Instituted
“Claim 1 does not limit the “caching unit” in any way. With this in mind, we preliminarily agree that Farber discloses the subject matter of limitation 1a sufficiently to meet Petitioner’s burden on institution. b.” slip op. at 14
Claim construction§ 102 anticipation§ 103 obviousnessDiscretionary denialPatents in suitUS 11,140,441 - Google, LLC. v. Escapex IP LLCInstitutedPTAB · May 28, 2025 · IPR2025-00337 · APJ Stacey G White · IPR · Institution
The Board instituted IPR on claims 1–24 based on five § 103 grounds involving Fuloria and Andler with additional references.
RulingsInstitution decision- PTAB / AIA Trials › Institution threshold (reasonable likelihood / more likely than not)InstitutedInstituted
“Under 35 U.S.C. § 314(a), an inter partes review may not be instituted unless the information presented in the petition “shows that there is a reasonable likelihood that the petitioner would prevail with respect to at least 1 of the claims challenged in the petition.” For the reasons stated below, we determine that Petitioner has established a reasonable likelihood that it would prevail with respect to at least one claim. We, therefore, grant Petitioner’s request to institute inter partes review of the challenged claims on the asserted grounds.” slip op. at 2
- Skill levelSkill level petitioner adoptedDecided for petitioner
“According to Petitioner, a person of ordinary skill in the art would have had “a bachelor’s degree in computer science or a similar field and three years of professional computer programming experience, including experience with networked media and databases, where additional education can substitute for experience or vice versa.” Pet. 20 (citing Ex. 1002 ¶¶ 27– 31). The level of ordinary skill in the art is usually evidenced by the references themselves. See Okajima v. Bourdeau, 261 F.3d 1350, 1355 (Fed. Cir. 2001); In re GPAC Inc., 57 F.3d 1573, 1579 (Fed. Cir. 1995); In re Oelrich, 579 F.2d 86, 91 (CCPA 1978). Petitioner’s description of a person of ordinary skill appears commensurate with the subject matter before us, and thus, we apply Petitioner’s definition for purposes of this Decision.” slip op. at 8
- Claim Construction › Threshold & procedure › Whether a term needs construction (O2 Micro)No construction neededOther
“Petitioner states that “to the extent that [the term “engagement”] requires construction, it should be construed as ‘an indication that a user should be distinguished with respect to the content over another user.” Pet. 11 (citing Ex. 1001, 5:53–55; Ex. 1002 ¶ 41). Based on the record before us, we see no need for express construction of any term for the purposes of this Decision. Nidec Motor Corp. v. Zhongshan Broad Ocean Motor Co., 868 F.3d 1013, 1017 (Fed. Cir. 2017) (“[W]e need only construe terms ‘that are in controversy, and only to the extent necessary to resolve the controversy’”).” slip op. at 9
- BurdenInstituted
“We are persuaded by Petitioner’s arguments and evidence. Fuloria teaches “a mechanism for user to promote social networking objects to other users.” Ex. 1004 ¶ 1. Fuloria displays a news feed containing social media content items. Id. at code (57), ¶¶ 6, 27. Users in Fuloria may like a piece of content or “for a given price” the user may turn their like into a “super-like.” Id. ¶ 37. “The ‘super-liked’ story is priced and directed toward users in a similar manner as a social ad. In particular embodiments, sponsored story system 304 may also add a weight to the story to alter its direction toward users.” Id. ¶ 39. Petitioner argues that “[t]his functionality represents uncapped engagement . . . because Fuloria places no limitation on how many times a user can super-like a piece of content.” Pet. 24–25. Dr. Bederson supports Petitioner by noting that Fuloria does not “place any limitation on how many credits a user can spend to increase the reach of the content.” Ex. 1002 ¶ 76. Further, Dr. Bederson states that “[m]ultiple different users can also promote the same content item. By allowing users to promote or ‘super-like’ content which also increases engagement with that content by other users, Fuloria’s system also facilitat[es] uncapped engagement with that content.” Id. ¶77. We find these arguments to be persuasive. The ’687 patent states that “[s]o long as the user has sufficient resources, the user may promote herself or others with uncapped (i.e., unlimited) engagements, which may facilitate getting noticed by other users, whether with respect to a social media content item.” Ex. 1001, 2:6–10. Similarly, Fuloria allows users to expend their resources and to have the super-like displayed according to the amount paid for the super-like. Ex. 1004 ¶ 57 (“In particular embodiments, the advertisement system adjusts the display of the ‘super-liked’ story based upon social factors as well as the real-world value of the credits paid.”); see also id. ¶ 38 (“[T]he social networking system may deduct the credits based on a cost per impression (CPM), effective cost per impression (eCPM), cost per click (CPC), or cost per action (CPA) pricing model”). Fuloria teaches likes from any number of users which is argued to disclose the multiple users recited in the claim. See Ex. 1002 ¶ 82 (discussing Fuloria’s display of engagement by a user and pointing out that Figure 9A shows 1,884 likes); see also id. ¶ 87 (“Fuloria teaches that ‘super-likes’ are available to users in general (and thus to first, second, third, etc. users).”). As to the number of engagements displayed by the first, second, and” slip op. at 16
Claim constructioncites PhillipsPatents in suitUS 10,474,687 - PTAB · Mar 28, 2025 · IPR2024-01505 · APJ Jameson Lee · IPR · Institution
The Board instituted IPR on claims 1–8, 15, 17, and 19–25 because Petitioner showed a reasonable likelihood of proving obviousness over Rusert and Zheng.
RulingsInstitution decision- PTAB / AIA Trials › Institution threshold (reasonable likelihood / more likely than not)InstitutedInstituted
“review. See 35 U.S.C. § 314 (2024); 37 C.F.R. § 42.4(a) (2024). An inter partes review may not be instituted unless the information presented in the Petition “shows that there is a reasonable likelihood that the petitioner would prevail with respect to at least 1 of the claims challenged in the petition.” 35 U.S.C.§ 314(a). The “reasonable likelihood” standard is “a higher standard than mere notice pleading” but “lower than the ‘preponderance’ standard to prevail in a final written decision.” Hulu, LLC v. Sound View Innovations, LLC, IPR2018-01039, Paper 29 at 13 (PTAB Dec. 20, 2019) (precedential). Upon consideration of the contentions and the evidence of record before us, we conclude Petitioner has shown a reasonable likelihood that it would prevail in establishing unpatentability of at least one challenged claim of the ’833 patent. Accordingly, we institute an inter partes review of all challenged claims of the ’833 patent on all grounds set forth in the Petition.” slip op. at 2
- Skill levelSkill level petitioner adoptedDecided for petitioner
“ordinary skill in the art (hereinafter “POSITA”) “would have had (1) a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering, computer engineering, computer science, or a comparable field of study such as physics, and (2) approximately two to three years of practical experience with video encoding/decoding.” Pet. 19 (citing Ex. 1003 ¶¶ 37–39). Patent Owner states that it “has applied Petitioner’s POSITA for the sake of this Response.” Prelim. Resp. 33. On this record, we adopt Petitioner’s statement of the level of ordinary skill in the art. It is supported by the testimony of Dr. Creusere and not disputed by Patent Owner. Further, it appears consistent with what is reflected by the content of the applied prior art. Cf. Okajima v. Bourdeau, 261 F.3d 1350, 1354–55 (Fed. Cir. 2001) (the applied prior art may reflect an appropriate level of skill). C.” slip op. at 14
- Claim Construction › Threshold & procedure › Whether a term needs construction (O2 Micro)No construction neededNot reached
“Only those claim terms that are in controversy need to be construed, and only to the extent necessary to resolve the controversy. Realtime Data, LLC v. Iancu, 912 F.3d 1368 (Fed. Cir. 2019) (“The Board is required to construe ‘only those terms . . . that are in controversy, and only to the extent necessary to resolve the controversy.’” (quoting Vivid Techs., Inc. v. Am. Sci. & Eng’g, Inc., 200 F.3d 795, 803 (Fed. Cir. 1999))).” slip op. at 16
- Claim Construction › Intrinsic evidence (Phillips canons) › Plain and ordinary meaning to a POSITATerm construed patent owner constructionDecided for patent owner
“That specific claim language of association indicates a relationship between “the block” and the first spatial motion vector prediction candidate, that is more than how every single prediction candidate broadly may be regarded in general as related to the current block being processed, the block for which a motion vector prediction list is being generated. The modifier “associated with the first spatial motion vector prediction candidate” clearly modifies “the block” at issue here and cannot be discarded or ignored. Further, if “the block” refers to the block recited in limitation [1a], i.e., the current block being processed, then the modifying phrase “associated with the first spatial motion vector prediction candidate” would be superfluous and have no meaning, because “the block,” without the modifying phrase, would already derive its antecedent basis from “a block of pixels” recited in limitation [1a]. We decline to adopt a construction that reads out “associated with the first spatial motion vector prediction candidate.” Construing the claim according to what the claim language actually states, without excluding any part of the claim language recited, is more appropriate.” slip op. at 18
Claim construction§ 103 obviousnessDiscretionary denialcites KSR · GrahamPatents in suitUS 9,571,833 - PTAB · Mar 28, 2025 · IPR2024-01503 · APJ Jameson Lee · IPR · Institution
The Board instituted IPR on claims 9–14, 16, 18, and 26–30 based on a reasonable likelihood of obviousness over Rusert and Zheng.
RulingsInstitution decision- PTAB / AIA Trials › Institution threshold (reasonable likelihood / more likely than not)InstitutedInstituted
“review. See 35 U.S.C. § 314 (2024); 37 C.F.R. § 42.4(a) (2024). An inter partes review may not be instituted unless the information presented in the Petition “shows that there is a reasonable likelihood that the petitioner would prevail with respect to at least 1 of the claims challenged in the petition.” 35 U.S.C. § 314(a). The “reasonable likelihood” standard is “a higher standard than mere notice pleading” but “lower than the ‘preponderance’ standard to prevail in a final written decision.” Hulu, LLC v. Sound View Innovations, LLC, IPR2018-01039, Paper 29 at 13 (PTAB Dec. 20, 2019) (precedential). Upon consideration of the contentions and the evidence of record before us, we conclude Petitioner has shown a reasonable likelihood that it would prevail in establishing unpatentability of at least one challenged claim of the ’833 patent. Accordingly, we institute an inter partes review of all challenged claims of the ’833 patent on all grounds set forth in the Petition.” slip op. at 2
- Claim Construction › Threshold & procedure › Whether a term needs construction (O2 Micro)Term construed board ownDecided for patent owner
“That specific claim language of association indicates a relationship between “the block” and the first spatial motion vector prediction candidate, that is more than how every single prediction candidate broadly may be regarded in general as related to the current block being processed, the block for which a motion vector prediction list is being generated. The modifier “associated with the first spatial motion vector prediction candidate” clearly modifies “the block” at issue here and cannot be discarded or ignored. Further, if “the block” refers to the block recited in limitation [9a], i.e., the current block being processed, then the modifying phrase “associated with the first spatial motion vector prediction candidate” would be superfluous and have no meaning, because “the block,” without the modifying phrase, would already derive its antecedent basis from “a block of pixels” recited in limitation [9a]. We decline to adopt a construction that reads out “associated with the first spatial motion vector prediction candidate.” Construing the claim according to what the claim language actually states, without excluding any part of the claim language recited, is more appropriate.” slip op. at 18
- Obviousness (§103) › Motivation to combine / reasonable expectation of successMotivation not foundNot shown unpatentable
“particular teachings sought to be combined. Rather, it appears, according to Petitioner, anything in Nakamura properly can be combined with anything in WD4 simply because Nakamura is a proposal for the next draft version of new standard H.265, i.e., version 4, and WD4 is the resulting draft version 4 of H.265 after all the proposals had been considered. Pet. 65–66. Petitioner’s reasoning is flawed and based on mere speculation. Nakamura is not a proposal to revise or modify WD4. WD4 did not yet exist at the time the Nakamura proposal was made. Even if some suggestions of Nakamura made it into WD4, as Petitioner asserts (Pet. 65), i.e., spatial merge candidate positions unification, that does not mean one of ordinary skill in the art would have had reason to combine other teachings of Nakamura with particular disclosures of WD4. Even assuming Nakamura and WD4 have striking similarities in some way and also a common purpose to some general extent, that still does not mean everything in one is combinable with everything in the other, without specific consideration and discussion of what are proposed to be combined and in what manner. g. Preliminary Conclusion for Claim 9 For the foregoing reasons, Petitioner has not shown a reasonable likelihood that it would prevail in establishing obviousness of claim 9 over Nakamura and WD4.” slip op. at 63
- PTAB / AIA Trials › Discretionary denial › §325(d) same art / argumentsDecided for petitioner
“We must grant or deny institution on both of Petitioner’s grounds. See 37 C.F.R. § 42.108(a). Petitioner has made a sufficient showing based on Rusert and Zheng for the Board to institute review, but not Nakamura and WD4. Here, § 325(d) is not sufficiently implicated that its statutory purpose would be undermined. Rather, the benefits of holding a trial to resolve the Rusert-Zheng ground for which Petitioner has shown a likelihood of prevailing outweigh any theoretical burden of addressing the weaker Nakamura-WD4 ground, to the extent that the Examiner considered Nakamura and WD4. See Dril-Quip, Inc., v. FMC Tech., Inc., PGR2021- 00049, Paper 10 at 13–14 (PTAB Aug. 4, 2021) (declining to exercise discretion to deny institution under § 325(d) even though one asserted ground was “weak” on the merits). Thus, we do not exercise our discretion to deny institution based on § 325(d). 3. Conclusion We find that the same or substantially the same prior art or arguments, i.e., Rusert (Ex. 1004) and Zheng (Ex. 1005), previously were not presented to the Office. We need not proceed past the first stage of the Advanced Bionics framework. We decline to exercise discretion under § 325(d) to deny the Petition.” slip op. at 68
Claim construction§ 103 obviousnessDiscretionary denialcites KSR · GrahamPatents in suitUS 9,571,833
Holdings, summaries, rulings, issues, outcomes, winners and claim constructions shown for a decision were generated by a large language model reading the opinion. They are a guide to the decision, not the decision. Confirm every one against the court's own text before relying on it. Outcomes read from the patent owner’s side. Party names are extracted from the decision and are missing on about 900 short Director denials and scans, which carry the trial number instead.