- Great West Casualty Company / Bitco General Insurance Corporation et al. v. Intellectual Ventures II LLCAll claims unpatentablePTAB · Jan 17, 2017 · IPR2015-01706 · APJ Michael W Kim · IPR · Final written decision
Claims 11, 12, and 16–20 are unpatentable as obvious over MyLibrary.
RulingsFinal written decision- Claim Construction › Intrinsic evidence (Phillips canons) › Plain and ordinary meaning to a POSITATerm construed board ownDecided for patent owner
“In summary, we construe “content” as “electronic data embodying information for an individual or individuals,” and excluding “links to content,” but not excluding “content” associated with the “links to content.”5” slip op. at 16
- Claim Construction › Threshold & procedure › Whether a term needs construction (O2 Micro)No construction neededDecided for patent owner
“written decision is issued shall be given its broadest reasonable construction in light of the specification of the patent in which it appears.” 37 C.F.R. § 42.100(b); see also Cuozzo Speed Techs., LLC v. Lee, 136 S. Ct. 2131, 2142 (2016) (Affirming that USPTO has statutory authority to construe claims according to 37 C.F.R. § 42.100(b).). When applying that standard, we interpret the claim language as it would be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art in light of the Specification. In re Suitco Surface, Inc., 603 F.3d 1255, 1260 (Fed. Cir. 2010). Thus, we generally give claim terms their ordinary and customary meaning. See In re Translogic Tech., Inc., 504 F.3d 1249, 1257 (Fed. Cir. 2007) (“The ordinary and customary meaning ‘is the meaning that the term would have to a person of ordinary skill in the art in question.’”). For the purposes of this decision, and on this record, we determine that most claim terms do not need express interpretation. See Vivid Techs., Inc. v. Am. Sci. & Eng’g, Inc., 200 F.3d 795, 803 (Fed. Cir. 1999) (Only those terms which are in controversy need to be construed, and only to the extent necessary to resolve the controversy.).” slip op. at 5
- Obviousness (§103) › Graham factors (scope of art, differences, level of skill)UnpatentableUnpatentable
“7. Conclusion We are persuaded that Petitioner has shown, by a preponderance of the evidence, that claims 11, 12, and 16–20 are unpatentable as obvious in view of MyLibrary. In addition to findings we make above in connection with our analysis of claims 11, 12, and 16–20 as obvious in view MyLibrary, we also adopt as our findings Petitioner’s positions as to how MyLibrary discloses each of the limitations of claims 11, 12, and 16–20. We further adopt as our own Petitioner’s rationales for modifying MyLibrary, as referenced above.” slip op. at 32
Patent outcomesUS 7,516,177 unpatentableClaim construction§ 103 obviousnesscites GrahamPatents in suitUS 7,516,177 - Commscope Technologies, LLC v. Communications Components Antenna Inc.Institution deniedPTAB · Nov 3, 2016 · IPR2016-00999 · APJ Jeffrey S Smith · IPR · Institution
The Board denied institution because the petition did not show a reasonable likelihood of proving claims 1–28 unpatentable, principally because Yea did not establish the claimed asymmetrical coverage areas.
RulingsInstitution decision- PTAB / AIA Trials › Institution threshold (reasonable likelihood / more likely than not)Institution denied meritsInstitution denied
“partes review of claims 1–28 of U.S. Patent No. 8,311,582 B2 (Ex. 1001, “the ’582 patent”). Paper 1 (“Pet.”). Patent Owner, Communications Components Antenna Inc., filed a Preliminary Response. Paper 7 (“Prelim. Resp.”). Institution of an inter partes review is authorized by statute when “the information presented in the petition . . . and any 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.” 35 U.S.C. § 314(a); see 37 C.F.R. § 42.108. Upon consideration of the Petition and the Preliminary Response, we are not persuaded Petitioner has demonstrated a reasonable likelihood that it would prevail in establishing the unpatentability of claims 1–28 of the ’582 patent. Accordingly, we do not institute an inter partes review.” slip op. at 2
- Claim Construction › Threshold & procedure › Whether a term needs construction (O2 Micro)Term construed petitioner constructionDecided for petitioner
“Petitioner’s proposed construction of this limitation is supported by the specification of the ’582 patent. The ’582 patent discloses replacing a single sector coverage area with sub-sector coverage areas, at least one of which is an asymmetrical coverage area. Ex. 1001, 3:16–18. The ’582 patent discloses that the use of asymmetrical coverage areas permits the total coverage area to closely approximate the symmetrical sector coverage area being replaced, without creating excessively large sub-sector handover zones or introducing sever degradation in network performance. Id. at 3:18–24. The ’582 patent discloses creating the asymmetrical coverage areas by replacing an existing antenna with an antenna that has substantially the same coverage area, but divides the coverage area into a plurality of separate asymmetrical beams or sub-sectors. Id. at 4:32–38. As disclosed by the ’582 patent, the replacement antenna produces a plurality of separate beams, each defining a new sub-sector with only a small overlapping area between them and which together provide substantially identical coverage to the sector supported by the original antenna, to upgrade the single sector to a plurality of sub-sectors without significantly affecting neighboring sites. Id. at 4:51–57. The replacement antenna introduces asymmetry into the generated beam pattern. Id. at 4:58–60. The introduction of asymmetrical beams by the replacement antenna allows close approximation of the coverage area of the conventional sector antenna being replaced. Id. at 5:61–64. For purposes of this Decision, we adopt Petitioner’s proposed construction of “a plurality of sub-sector coverage areas extending therefrom, at least one of which is asymmetrical,” as a plurality of replacement sub-sector beams, at least one of which has an asymmetrical shape, where asymmetry includes deliberate or inherent asymmetry as the broadest reasonable construction consistent with the specification.” slip op. at 8
- Novelty / Anticipation (§102) › Anticipation standard (single reference, every element)Not shown unpatentableNot shown unpatentable
“49 (Fed. Cir. 2005). There, the district court invalidated claims of the patent in suit on summary judgment based on the measured dimensions of a prior art patent figure. Id. at 1148. The Federal Circuit reversed, warning “that arguments based on drawings not explicitly made to scale in issued patents are unavailing.” Id. at 1149. Petitioner here does not identify any portion of Yea disclosing that Figures 4 and 8 are drawn accurately enough to determine an asymmetrical nature of the radiation patterns. Petitioner also fails to cite to any disclosure in Yea that identifies or describes an asymmetrical nature of the radiation patterns. Furthermore, Petitioner also has not explained why the shapes shown in the linear scale drawings of Figure 4 would show similar shapes when converted to a logarithmic scale. Additionally, Petitioner does not explain why the carrier to interference ratio shown in Figure 8 can be used to accurately measure antenna radiation beam patterns. We find Petitioner does not sufficiently establish that the plots shown in Figures 4 and 8 of Yea can be used to determine whether the antenna radiation beam pattern is asymmetrical. On the record before us, we determine the Petition and supporting evidence does not adequately establish a reasonable likelihood that Petitioner would prevail in showing that Yea anticipates independent claims 1, 13, and 20. b. Dependent Claims 2, 6, 7, 9, 11, 12, 14, 15, 18, 19, 21, 22, 24, and 27 Petitioner argues that Yea anticipates dependent claims 2, 6, 7, 9, 11, 12, 14, 15, 18, 19, 21, 22, 24, and 27. Pet. 47–53. In so arguing, Petitioner relies on Yea as disclosing the claimed asymmetrical coverage area. Id. Because we are not persuaded that Yea discloses this limitation, we are not persuaded that Petitioner establishes a reasonable likelihood of prevailing in showing that Yea anticipates dependent claims 2, 6, 7, 9, 11, 12, 14, 15, 18, 19, 21, 22, 24, and 27.” slip op. at 14
- Obviousness (§103) › Motivation to combine / reasonable expectation of successMotivation not foundNot shown unpatentableNot shown unpatentable
“as well as testimony of both Mr. Collins and Mr. Cosgrove. Under Rule 37 C.F.R. § 42.108, any genuine issues of material fact created by the testimonial evidence should be viewed in light most favorable to the petitioner solely for purposes of deciding whether to institute an inter partes review. Even reviewing the testimony of Mr. Collins in the light most favorable to Petitioner, we determine Petitioner has established only that asymmetrical beams may be used in a planar array antenna, but not that a person of ordinary skill in the art would have understood steered beams of a planar array antenna are necessarily asymmetrical. Mr. Collins cites to Litva (Ex. 1009) and Wästberg (Ex. 1018) in stating that prior art steered beams of a planar array antenna can be asymmetrical beams. Ex. 1024 ¶ 179. We credit Patent Owner’s arguments and the testimony of Mr. Cosgrove to determine Petitioner does not sufficiently establish the likelihood that a person of ordinary skill in the art would have understood that steered beams of a planar array antenna are necessarily asymmetrical. Further, Petitioner fails to set forth a sufficient rationale for why a person of ordinary skill in the art would use the asymmetrical beams of the prior art with the disclosure of Yea. Pet. 39–40. On the record before us, we determine the Petition and supporting evidence does not adequately establish a reasonable likelihood that using asymmetrical beams in Yea would have been obvious. We therefore conclude that the information presented does not show a reasonable likelihood that Petitioner would prevail in showing the subject matter of claims 1, 2, 6, 7, 9, 11–15, 18–22, 24, and 27 would have been obvious over Yea, Metawave Website, Litva, and Wästberg.” slip op. at 22
Claim construction§ 102 anticipation§ 103 obviousnessPatents in suitUS 8,311,582 - Sandisk Corp. v. Netlist, Inc.All claims unpatentablePTAB · Sep 28, 2016 · IPR2015-01021 · APJ Bryan F Moore · IPR · Final written decision
Claims 1, 16, 17, 24, 30, and 31 are unpatentable as obvious over Takeda, JEDEC, and Connolly.
RulingsFinal written decision- Prior constructionPrior construction adoptedDecided for patent owner
“1. “Rank” In the Decision to Institute, we construed the term “rank” as “a block or area that is created using some or all of the memory chips on a memory module.” Dec. to Inst. 8–9. In their papers, neither party challenged our constructions of these claim terms. Thus, for the term “rank,” we see no reason to alter the construction of this claim term as set forth in the Decision to Institute as recited above, and we incorporate our previous analysis for purposes of this decision.” slip op. at 8
- Claim Construction › Threshold & procedure › Whether a term needs construction (O2 Micro)No construction neededDecided for patent owner
“2. All Other Claim Terms We determine that no explicit construction is necessary for any other terms in the challenged claims. B.” slip op. at 8
- Skill levelSkill level board ownOther
“would understand basic memory and data communication concepts, with a bachelor’s degree in any of electrical engineering, computer engineering, computer science, or related field. Course work for one of ordinary skill in the art would have included a course on computer organization, principles of digital design, or computer architecture. One of ordinary skill in the art would also have around one year of experience related to computer memory systems. For example, such experience may include experience in DRAM memory technology and related industry standards such as JEDEC standards for DRAM memories and memory modules. Ex. 1002 ¶ 53. Patent Owner’s Declarant, Carl Sechen, Ph.D. (“Dr. Sechen”), testifies that one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the ’536 Patent would have had an undergraduate degree in electrical engineering or computer engineering, at least two years of professional experience in the design of memory systems, familiarity with the latest JEDEC standard specifications for memory devices and modules, and familiarity with the latest DRAM (dynamic random access memory) memory devices widely available in the market. Ex. 2001 ¶ 14. Dr. Sechen further testifies that a person of ordinary skill in the art would have design proficiency in memory modules comprising DDR memory technology, such as memory modules with JEDEC standard DDR SDRAM (synchronous DRAM) devices. Id. ¶ 15. Based on our review of the ’536 Patent and the types of problems and solutions described in the ’536 Patent and cited prior art, we conclude a person of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the ’536 Patent would have a Bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering, computer engineering, computer science, or related field, and at least one year of work experience, including familiarity with computer memory systems and related industry standards such as JEDEC standards for DRAM memories and memory modules. We further note that the applied prior art reflects the appropriate level of skill at the time of the claimed invention. See Okajima v. Bourdeau, 261 F.3d 1350, 1355 (Fed. Cir. 2001). D.” slip op. at 10
- Expert testimonyPetitioner expert creditedDecided for petitioner
“To testify as an expert under Federal Rule of Evidence 702, a person need not be a person of ordinary skill in the art, but rather must be “qualified in the pertinent art.” Sundance, Inc. v. DeMonte Fabricating Ltd., 550 F.3d 1356, 1363–64 (Fed. Cir. 2008); see SEB S.A. v. Montgomery Ward & Co., 594 F.3d 1360, 1372–73 (Fed. Cir. 2010) (upholding a district court’s ruling to allow an expert to provide testimony at trial because the expert “had sufficient relevant technical expertise” and the expert’s “knowledge, skill, experience, training [and] education . . . [wa]s likely to assist the trier of fact to understand the evidence”); Mytee Prods., Inc. v. Harris Research, Inc., 439 F. App’x 882, 886–87 (Fed. Cir. 2011) (non-precedential) (upholding admission of the testimony of an expert who “had experience relevant to the field of the invention,” despite admission that he was not a person of ordinary skill in the art). As noted above, Dr. Jagannathan has designed and implemented hardware virtual memory caches, and researched theoretical performance measures of various cache coherency protocols, and has experience in the design of memory systems. We find that Dr. Jagannathan is qualified sufficiently to testify about memory systems and memory modules. E.” slip op. at 12
Patent outcomesUS 8,081,536 unpatentableClaim construction§ 103 obviousnesscites KSR · GrahamPatents in suitUS 8,081,536 - Sandisk Corp. v. Netlist, Inc.Some claims unpatentablePTAB · Sep 28, 2016 · IPR2015-01020 · APJ Peter P Chen · IPR · Final written decision
Claims 17, 22, 24, 26, and 33 are unpatentable as obvious over Takeda, JEDEC, and Connolly; claims 15, 16, 31, and 32 were not shown unpatentable over Takeda and JEDEC.
RulingsFinal written decision- Claim Construction › Intrinsic evidence (Phillips canons) › Plain and ordinary meaning to a POSITATerm construed petitioner constructionDecided for petitioner
“We are unpersuaded by Patent Owner’s position. First, the claim language does not recite any physical or structural connection, rather, only “electrically coupling.” Pet. Reply 3, 8–9. In addition, the specification of the ’150 patent does not define explicitly the term “selectively electrically coupling.” Therefore, as in IPR2014-00882 and IPR2014-01011, we refer to its ordinary and customary meaning, as would be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art in the context of the entire disclosure. Translogic Tech., 504 F.3d at 1257. A technical dictionary, the IEEE Dictionary,4 defines “electrical coupling” as “[e]lectrical charges in conductors of a disturbed circuit formed by electrical induction.” Ex. 3001. The IEEE Dictionary explains that “[s]ince the ratio of a conductor’s electrostatic charge to the potential difference between conductors (required to maintain that charge) is the general definition of capacitance, electrical coupling is also called capacitive coupling.” Id. The IEEE Dictionary defines” slip op. at 9
- Skill levelSkill level board ownOther
“Based on our review of the ’150 patent and the types of problems and solutions described in the ’150 patent and cited prior art, we conclude a person of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the ’150 patent would have a Bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering, computer engineering, computer science, or related field, and at least one year of work experience, including familiarity with computer memory systems and related industry standards such as JEDEC standards for DRAM memories and memory modules. We further note that the applied prior art reflects the appropriate level of skill at the time of the claimed invention. See Okajima v. Bourdeau, 261 F.3d 1350, 1355 (Fed. Cir. 2001). D. Declarant Testimony” slip op. at 13
- Expert testimonyPetitioner expert creditedDecided for petitioner
“To testify as an expert under Federal Rule of Evidence 702, a person need not be a person of ordinary skill in the art, but rather must be “qualified in the pertinent art.” Sundance, Inc. v. DeMonte Fabricating Ltd., 550 F.3d 1356, 1363–64 (Fed. Cir. 2008); see SEB S.A. v. Montgomery Ward & Co., 594 F.3d 1360, 1372–73 (Fed. Cir. 2010) (upholding a district court’s ruling to allow an expert to provide testimony at trial because the expert “had sufficient relevant technical expertise” and the expert’s “knowledge, skill, experience, training [and] education . . . [wa]s likely to assist the trier of fact to understand the evidence”); Mytee Prods., Inc. v. Harris Research, Inc., 439 F. App’x 882, 886–87 (Fed. Cir. 2011) (non-precedential) (upholding admission of the testimony of an expert who “had experience relevant to the field of the invention,” despite admission that he was not a person of ordinary skill in the art). As noted above, Dr. Jagannathan has designed and implemented hardware virtual memory caches, and researched theoretical performance measures of various cache coherency protocols, and has experience in the design of memory systems. We find that, although Dr. Jagannathan may be less experienced than Dr. Sechen in the area of memory module design, he is nonetheless qualified sufficiently to testify about memory systems and memory modules. E. Asserted Obviousness of Claims 15, 16, 31, and 32 in view of Takeda” slip op. at 14
- ExcludeMotion to exclude, deniedDenied
“We have reviewed the parties’ contentions on this issue, and exercise our discretion to determine that Petitioner’s Reply and the Jagannathan Supplemental Declaration will not be excluded. We find that, although they may be “inartfully” drafted, the first Jagannathan declaration and Petition sufficiently outlined Petitioner’s position on the function of the chip select signal, namely, that the chip select signal was not itself the logic signal enabling operation of bit-switches. We further find that Petitioner’s Reply and the Supplemental Jagannathan Declaration did not present an entirely new rationale of unpatentability based on Takeda, JEDEC, and Connolly. Cf. Intelligent Bio-Sys., Inc. v. Illumina Cambridge Ltd., 821 F.3d 1359, 1369–70 (Fed. Cir. 2016) (affirming Board’s exclusion of reply brief and declaration that changed unpatentability theory to “an entirely new rationale”). Moreover, there is no dispute that Patent Owner was aware of Petitioner’s position by no later than the Jagannathan deposition, which preceded Patent Owner’s Response by ten days. Patent Owner could have addressed Petitioner’s chip select signal contention, procedurally or substantively, in its Response, but chose to raise the issue only after Petitioner filed its Reply and Supplemental Jagannathan Declaration. Accordingly, Patent Owner had notice of Petitioner’s position and an opportunity to refute that position in its Response.” slip op. at 24
Patent outcomesUS 7,881,150 mixedClaim construction§ 103 obviousnesscites KSR · GrahamPatents in suitUS 7,881,150 - PTAB · Aug 30, 2016 · IPR2014-01448 · APJ Debra K Stephens · IPR · Rehearing
The Board denied rehearing of its final written decision, leaving claims 1 and 7 unpatentable over He and Korodi under § 103.
RulingsRehearing decision- RehearingRehearing, deniedDenied
“decision should be modified, and “[t]he request must specifically identify all matters the party believes the Board misapprehended or overlooked, and the place where each matter was previously addressed in a motion, an opposition, or a reply.” 37 C.F.R. § 42.71(d).” slip op. at 4
- Obviousness (§103) › Motivation to combine / reasonable expectation of successNot reached
“pursuant to 35 U.S.C. § 318(a) and 37 C.F.R. § 42.73, concluding Petitioner had shown by a preponderance of the evidence that the challenged claims are unpatentable. Specifically, we determined Petitioner had established by a preponderance of the evidence claims 1 and 7 are unpatentable under 35 U.S.C. § 103(a) over He and Korodi (Final Dec. 11–25). In light of our determination that Petitioner had established by a preponderance of the evidence that claims 1 and 7 of the ’279 Patent are unpatentable under 35 U.S.C. § 103(a) as obvious over He and Korodi, we took no position on whether the same claims are also obvious over the combination of the teachings and suggestions of Gustafsson and He (id. at 25).” slip op. at 3
§ 103 obviousnessPatents in suitUS 7,671,279 - Mastercard International Inc. v. Leon StamblerAll claims unpatentablePTAB · Jul 6, 2016 · CBM2015-00044 · APJ Peter P Chen · CBM · Final written decision
Claims 51 and 53 are unpatentable as anticipated by Davies; claims 51, 53, 55, and 56 are unpatentable as obvious over Davies and Meyer; claim 55 over Davies and Nechvatal; and claim 56 over Davies, …
RulingsFinal written decision- Skill levelSkill level board ownOther
“F. Level of Ordinary Skill in the Art Petitioner’s proposal for the level of ordinary skill in the art is “at least a bachelors degree in computer programming and two years’ experience as a programmer or developer in the field of computer science, with a working understanding of cryptographic operations for transforming original input into a coded output using a known algorithm.” Pet. 14–15. Patent Owner has proposed similarly, that one of ordinary skill in the art would possess “(1) undergraduate education in mathematics, physics, computer science, electrical engineering or similar technical subject; and (2) either postgraduate education in networking, cryptography, or other discipline encompassing information theory, or equivalent experience with applications involving communication of financial, military, medical or similarly sensitive data over secure and non-secure networks.” Prelim. Resp. 30–31. We determine that an express definition of the level of ordinary skill is not required. The level of ordinary skill in the art can be reflected in the cited prior art references. See Okajima v. Bourdeau, 261 F.3d 1350, 1355 (Fed. Cir. 2001) (“[T]he absence of specific findings on the level of skill in the art does not give rise to reversible error ‘where the prior art itself reflects an appropriate level and a need for testimony is not shown.’”) (internal quotations omitted); In re GPAC Inc., 57 F.3d 1573, 1579 (Fed. Cir. 1995). Therefore, we find the level of ordinary skill in the art to be reflected in the cited references.” slip op. at 16
- Claim Construction › Threshold & procedure › Whether a term needs construction (O2 Micro)Term construed board ownDecided for petitioner
“1. “variable authentication number (VAN)” In the Decision to Institute, we construed the term “variable authentication number” or “VAN” as “a variable number resulting from a coding operation that can be used in verifying the identity of a party or the integrity of information or both.” Dec. to Inst. 8. See also Case IPR2014-00694, slip op. at 8–9 (PTAB Oct. 31, 2014) (Paper 10). Patent Owner “does not challenge this construction.” PO Resp. 16–17. Patent Owner asserts additional construction of the term is necessary for CBM standing issues, but does not elaborate further. PO Resp. 1. Patent Owner also argues we incorrectly applied the broadest reasonable interpretation to the term in the Decision to Institute. PO Resp. 9. The Decision to Institute noted that our review of the claims of the expired ’302 patent is similar to that of a district court’s review, In re Rambus, Inc., 694 F.3d 42, 46 (Fed. Cir. 2012); Phillips v. AWH Corp., 415 F.3d 1303, 1327 (Fed. Cir. 2005), but inadvertently mentioned the broadest reasonable interpretation standard in construing this term. Dec. to Inst. 7–8. We reaffirm our agreement with Patent Owner that the Phillips framework is applied to the expired ’302 patent. Our construction of “VAN” is the same under either claim construction standard. We reject Patent Owner’s undeveloped argument regarding standing, and maintain the construction of VAN from the Decision to Institute, as the ordinary and customary meaning of the term: “a variable number resulting from a coding operation that can be used in verifying the identity of a party or the integrity of information or both.”” slip op. at 10
- Claim Construction › Intrinsic evidence (Phillips canons) › Plain and ordinary meaning to a POSITATerm construed patent owner constructionDecided for patent owner
“2. Sequence of method steps: receiving, generating In the Decision to Institute, we agreed with Patent Owner and construed the sequence of method steps in independent claim 51 to mean that at least a portion of the receiving step must precede the generating step. Dec. to Inst. 8. See also Case IPR2014-00694, slip op. at 11–14 (PTAB Oct. 31, 2014) (Paper 10). We maintain that construction as the ordinary and customary meaning of the sequence of the receiving and generating method steps.” slip op. at 11
- Claim Construction › Intrinsic evidence (Phillips canons) › Preamble limiting or notPreamble limitingDecided for patent owner
“intended use of an invention is generally not treated as limiting the scope of the claim. Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica, Inc. v. Schering-Plough Corp., 320 F.3d 1339, 1345 (Fed. Cir. 2003). However, “a preamble limits the invention if it recites essential structure or steps, or if it is ‘necessary to give life, meaning, and vitality’ to the claim.” Catalina Mktg. Int'l, Inc. v. Coolsavings.com, Inc., 289 F.3d 801, 808 (Fed. Cir. 2002) (citing Pitney Bowes Inc. v. Hewlett-Packard Co., 182 F.3d 1298, 1305 (Fed. Cir. 1999). “The effect preamble language should be given can be resolved only on review of the entirety of the patent to gain an understanding of what the inventors actually invented and intended to encompass by the claim.” Corning Glass Works v. Sumitomo Elec. U.S.A., Inc., 868 F.2d 1251, 1257 (Fed. Cir. 1989). When the limitations in the body of the claim rely upon or derive essential structure from the preamble elements, e.g., the preamble serves as an antecedent basis for limitations in the claim, then the preamble acts as a necessary component of the claimed invention and is limiting. See Eaton Corp. v. Rockwell Int’l Corp., 323 F.3d 1332, 1339 (Fed. Cir. 2003). In this case, the preamble of independent claim 51 recites “a credential being previously issued,” and the limitations of the claim include “determining whether the at least a portion of the received funds transfer information is authentic by using the VAN and the credential information.” Ex. 1001, 33:18–19, 33:29–31. Thus, the preamble’s recitation of “a credential” is an antecedent basis for the recited “the credential information” in the “determining” step, and we determine that the preamble limits the scope of the challenged independent claim 51 and dependent claims 53, 55, and 56.” slip op. at 11
Patent outcomesUS 5,793,302 unpatentableClaim construction§ 102 anticipation§ 103 obviousnesscites Phillips · KSR · GrahamPatents in suitUS 5,793,302 - Corelogic, Inc. v. Boundary Solutions, Inc.Institution deniedPTAB · May 24, 2016 · CBM2016-00016 · APJ Peter P Chen · CBM · Institution
The Board denied institution for claims 1–19 because the petition did not establish that the ’957 patent qualifies as a covered business method patent.
RulingsInstitution decision- PTAB / AIA Trials › Institution threshold (reasonable likelihood / more likely than not)Institution denied meritsInstitution denied
“method patent,” as defined by the AIA. CoreLogic bears the burden of persuasion that the ’957 patent is a covered business method patent. See 37 C.F.R. § 42.304(a). For the reasons discussed below, we determine CoreLogic has made an insufficient showing that the ’957 patent is a “covered business method patent.” The AIA defines “covered business method patent” as “a patent that claims a method or corresponding apparatus for performing data processing or other operations used in the practice, administration, or management of a financial product or service, except that the term does not include patents for technological inventions.” AIA § 18(d)(1); see also 37 C.F.R. § 42.301(a). The legislative history of the AIA “explains that the definition of covered business method patent was drafted to encompass patents ‘claiming activities that are financial in nature, incidental to a financial activity or complementary to a financial activity.’” Transitional Program for Covered Business Method Patents—Definitions of Covered Business Method Patent and Technological Invention; Final Rule, 77 Fed. Reg. 48,374, 48,735 (Aug. 14, 2012) (“CBM Final Rules”) (quoting 157 Cong. Rec. S5432 (daily ed. Sept. 8, 2011)); see also Blue Calypso, LLC v. Groupon, Inc., 815 F.3d 1331, 1338 (Fed. Cir. 2016). To determine whether a patent is eligible for a covered business method patent review, the focus is on the claims. AIA § 18(d)(1) (“a patent that claims . . .” (emphasis added)); 37 C.F.R. § 42.301(a) (same); CBM Final Rules, 77 Fed. Reg. at 48,736 (comment 4) (“[T]he definition set forth in § 42.301(a) . . . is based on what the patent claims.”). A patent need have only one claim directed to a covered business method to be eligible for review. CBM Final Rules, 77 Fed. Reg. at 48,736 (comment 8) (“A patent having one or more claims directed to a covered business method is a covered business method patent for purposes of the review, even if the patent includes additional claims.”).” slip op. at 5
- Adverse judgmentAdverse judgmentOther
“patent because “[a]t least claim 1 of the ’957 patent claims data processing or other operations that are financial in nature or, at a minimum, incidental or complementary to a financial activity.” Pet. 7. CoreLogic also relies on dependent claims 13 and 16–18, and argues that those claims “explicitly limit the claims to financial applications.” Id. at 9; see also id. at 11 (alleging that claims 16–18 cover “subject matter incidental or complementary to a financial activity”). As noted above, however, BSI disclaimed claims 13 and 16–18 at the same time it filed its Preliminary Response. See Ex. 2003. “A statutory disclaimer under 35 U.S.C. § 253 has the effect of canceling the claims from the patent and the patent is viewed as though the disclaimed claims had never existed in the patent.” Guinn v. Kopf, 96 F.3d 1419, 1422 (Fed. Cir. 1996). We agree with other panels that have considered this issue under similar facts and concluded that the disclaimed claims should not be consulted when determining whether the patent is a covered business method patent under AIA §18(d)(1).1 We are mindful that other Board decisions have evaluated compliance with CBM standing requirements at the time of filing, but those cases are distinguishable2 and not binding here. Any suggestion in those cases that a decision on institution should address the disclaimed claims because they existed at the time the petition was filed is inconsistent with Federal Circuit precedent instructing us to treat the claims as if they never existed, and our Rules forbidding institution “based on disclaimed claims.” Guinn, 96 F.3d at 1422; 37 CFR § 42.207(e) (“No post-grant review will be instituted based on disclaimed claims.”); see also Google Inc. v. SimpleAir, Inc., CBM2015- 00019, slip op. at 5–6 (PTAB Aug. 19, 2015) (Paper 15) (Order Denying Request for Rehearing) (rejecting petitioner’s argument that disclaimed claim should be considered because it existed at the time the petition was 1 See, e.g., AT&T Mobility LLC v. Intellectual Ventures II LLC, CBM2015- 00185, slip op. at 9–10 (PTAB May 4, 2016) (Paper 10); Great West Casualty Co. v. Intellectual Ventures II LLC, CBM2015-00171, slip op. at 7–9 (PTAB Feb. 9, 2016) (Paper 10); Google Inc. v. SimpleAir, Inc., CBM2015-00019, slip op. at 14–15 (PTAB May 19, 2014) (Paper 11). 2 In Travelers Lloyds of Texas Ins. Co. v. Integrated Claims Sys., LLC, CBM2014-00187, slip op. at 7, 8 n.1 (PTAB Mar. 30, 2016) (Paper 31), the Patent Owner attempted to cancel a claim after institution, not disclaim a claim prior to institution. In J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. v. Intellectual Ventures II LLC, CBM2014-00157, slip op. at 9 (PTAB Jan. 12, 2016) (Paper 40), the Patent Owner’s disclaimer occurred after institution, not prior to institution. filed). We therefore do not consider disclaimed claims 13 and 16–18 in our analysis.” slip op. at 6
- BurdenDecided for patent owner
“We agree with BSI. CoreLogic does not explain adequately how any of the claims of the ’957 patent recite a method or apparatus “for performing data processing or other operations used in the practice, administration, or management of a financial product or service.” AIA § 18(d)(1); see also 37 C.F.R. § 42.301(a). CoreLogic focuses on claim 1, but fails to identify any limitation in claim 1 or any other claim that relates to a financial activity in any way. Claim 1 claims a “method for retrieving geographic parcel boundary polygon maps and associated parcel attribute data,” which has applicability to retrieving and displaying map data, not financial products and services. CoreLogic suggests that the “transmitting” step of claim 1 “can be used” by various entities in a business context, but does not argue, let alone establish, that the claim terms on their face are financial in nature. See Pet. 1. CoreLogic asserts that the Specification of the ’957 patent describes several methods of generating revenue using the claimed methods, and that numerous businesses may pay for access to map data generated using the claimed method. Pet. 10–16. CoreLogic’s reliance on these portions of the Specification is unavailing. First, CoreLogic fails to address how these disclosures relate directly to, or meaningfully informs our analysis of, the language of the claims. For example, CoreLogic does not direct us to any claims or claim limitations that require users to pay for access to the map database or use of the claimed methods. Second, CoreLogic fails to address portions of the Specification that indicate the claimed invention can be used “for free,” i.e., without any generation of revenue or financial aspect at all. See Ex. 1001, 2:58 (“These end users may access for free . . . .”), 14:11–15 (“Another public-private alliance option is to offer the free use of the NPDP server to such data sponsors in addition to or in lieu of their revenue share.”), 14:41–45 (“[C]ommodity service subscriber end users (customers) can have access to the NPDP at no charge.”), 16:8–12 (“It is also contemplated that other independent public and private data sponsors could be provided with links as part of the NPDP display which end users could access on a free or fee basis.”). Given that the Specification contemplates use of the claimed inventions for free, it is not apparent that the “purpose of the claimed method is to provide data in exchange for money,” as CoreLogic suggests. Pet. 10. At most, CoreLogic has established that the claimed methods could be used to generate revenue in a number of ways, even though the language of the claims does not require any exchange of money or other financially related step. Under these circumstances, we conclude that the “financial prong” has not been met. Numerous Board decisions have taken a similar approach in situations where the Specification refers to potential financial applications for the claimed inventions but the claim language does not expressly indicate a financial context.3 In Qualtrics, LLC v. OpinionLab,” slip op. at 10
NonePatents in suitUS 7,092,957 - Corelogic, Inc. v. Boundary Solutions, Inc.No claims unpatentablePTAB · May 19, 2016 · IPR2015-00219 · APJ Lynne E Pettigrew · IPR · Final written decision
Claims 12–15 and 17–21 were not shown unpatentable because Oosterom did not disclose searching the database using a jurisdictional identifier.
RulingsFinal written decision- Claim Construction › Threshold & procedure › Whether a term needs construction (O2 Micro)Term construed board ownDecided for patent owner
“In the Institution Decision, we construed “jurisdictional identifier” to mean “a number or other name, code, or description that identifies a jurisdiction.” Dec. 6. We based our construction on the only appearance of “jurisdictional identifier” in the written description of the ’352 patent, which states: FIG. 3 illustrates a USA County Boundary Map (USACM). This is a public domain boundary file of each and every of the 3140 counties within the United States. Each of these polygons is geocoded with its county name and FIPS number, a numerical jurisdictional identifier, as illustrated in the figure. Ex. 1001, 8:48–53 (emphasis added).3 BSI does not challenge our construction of “jurisdictional identifier” in its Patent Owner Response, see PO Resp. 6, nor does CoreLogic challenge the construction in its Reply, see Reply 10. For this Final Written Decision, after considering the complete record, we maintain our construction of “jurisdictional identifier” as “a number or other name, code, or description that identifies a jurisdiction.”” slip op. at 5
- Novelty / Anticipation (§102) › Anticipation standard (single reference, every element)Not shown unpatentableNot shown unpatentable
“Having reviewed the arguments and evidence, we are not persuaded CoreLogic has demonstrated that Oosterom discloses searching the parcel map database “using a jurisdictional identifier” as recited in claim 12. Among the attributes in Oosterom’s parcel and boundary tables identified by CoreLogic in its analysis, only the municipality codes (i.e., “municip” in the parcel table and “L_municip” and “R_municip” in the boundary table) qualify as “jurisdictional identifiers.” See Ex. 1010, 513–14 (Tables 1, 2). The “object_id” of an object, e.g., a parcel or a boundary, is a nationwide unique identifier, but there is no indication in Oosterom that the object_id of a parcel or boundary identifies a jurisdiction. See id. at 512; see also id. at 513–14 (showing object_id attribute in parcel and boundary tables). As for the “ogroup” attribute in the parcel and boundary tables, Oosterom states only that it “indicates to which group the record belongs.” Id. at 519. Nothing in Oosterom describes the ogroup as identifying a jurisdiction. Although the municipality code attributes in the parcel and boundary tables identify jurisdiction, CoreLogic does not cite any portion of Oosterom that illustrates the use of municipality codes in searching the database for selected parcels as required by claim 12. See Pet. 45. Dr. Goodchild opines that the “municipality code . . . would allow us to search [the] parcel table by that jurisdiction and to identify all the parcels in that jurisdiction.” Ex. 2010, 19:22–24. He further testifies that in his analysis, he “was concerned with the specific kind of query identified in the claim, which is much narrower than Oosterom’s discussion [and] much more specific than the broad range of queries discussed by Oosterom.” Id. at 21:14–25. Ultimately, he states that the “question [he] analyzed is whether [Oosterom’s] database is capable of supporting the type of query identified in the claim.” Id. at 22:14–16 (emphasis added). Dr. Goodchild’s testimony that municipality codes could be used in searching Oosterom’s database, however, is insufficient to establish for anticipation purposes that Oosterom discloses the step of searching a multi-jurisdictional digital parcel map database for a selected parcel boundary polygon “using a jurisdictional identifier.”” slip op. at 10
- ExcludeOther
“C. CoreLogic’s Motion to Exclude Evidence CoreLogic moves to exclude the redirect testimony of BSI’s expert, Mr. William Huxhold, on the ground that it was provided in response to leading questions. Mot. Excl. 1 (citing Ex. 1034, 150:6–153:8). The redirect testimony relates to a portion of Mr. Huxhold’s cross-examination testimony. Id. at 1–2 (citing Ex. 1034, 72:5–22). Because we do not rely on Mr. Huxhold’s testimony, CoreLogic’s motion is dismissed as moot.” slip op. at 12
Patent outcomesUS 8,065,352 not shown unpatentableClaim construction§ 102 anticipationPatents in suitUS 8,065,352 - Corelogic, Inc. v. Boundary Solutions, Inc.All claims unpatentablePTAB · May 19, 2016 · IPR2015-00226 · APJ Peter P Chen · IPR · Final written decision
Claims 1–12, 14, 15, and 19–21 are unpatentable as obvious over the Harder-based grounds; the Kearney and ARC/INFO ground was not proven for claims 1–6 and 20–21.
RulingsFinal written decision- BurdenFwd mixedUnpatentable
“In summary, we agree with Petitioner’s contentions and find that Harder and Longley, once combined as proposed by Petitioner, teach or suggest the limitations of independent claim 1.” slip op. at 20
- Skill levelSkill level board ownOther
“C. Level of Ordinary Skill in the Art Petitioner’s proposal for the level of ordinary skill in the art is “at least a bachelors degree in geographic information science, survey engineering, geomatics, or similar education, and two years of experience in a relevant field (e.g., land or geographic information science), or six years of experience in the relevant field.” Ex. 1006 (Declaration of Michael Goodchild), ¶ 11. Patent Owner has proposed that one of ordinary skill in the art would possess a “a Bachelor’s degree or higher in, GIS engineering with at least 5 years of academic or industry experience in GIS database design..” Ex. 2005 (Declaration of William Huxhold), ¶ 14. We determine that an express definition of the level of ordinary skill is not required. The level of ordinary skill in the art can be reflected in the cited prior art references. See Okajima v. Bourdeau, 261 F.3d 1350, 1355 (Fed. Cir. 2001) (“[T]he absence of specific findings on the level of skill in the art does not give rise to reversible error where the prior art itself reflects an appropriate level and a need for testimony is not shown.”) (internal quotations omitted); In re GPAC Inc., 57 F.3d 1573, 1579 (Fed. Cir. 1995). Therefore, we find the level of ordinary skill in the art to be reflected in the cited references.” slip op. at 11
- Obviousness (§103) › Motivation to combine / reasonable expectation of successMotivation foundDecided for petitioner
“The disclosure of Longley and the knowledge of one skilled in the art would have motivated such a person to modify Harder’s system given that Harder discloses parcel-based searching and display functionalities for a jurisdiction (e.g., Ex. 1003, 21-25) and for multiple states (id., 49-51), and discloses that databases in GIS environments could span multiple jurisdictions (id.,7, 49- 51), and that Longley discloses configuring such databases to include data relating to different states and also discloses parcel based systems. Moreover, one skilled in the art would have been motivated to look to Longley to supplement the features of the systems and processes of Harder given they both describe[] features of ESRI systems. Ex. 1015, 170, 172; Ex. 1003. Thus, modifying Harder’s database in such a way would have been a common sense and predictable modification that was within the realm of knowledge of one skilled in the art at the time of the alleged invention. See KSR, 550 U.S. at 417; Ex. 1006, ¶¶ 35- 39. Pet. 18–19. The Petition continues:” slip op. at 20
- Obviousness (§103) › Graham factors (scope of art, differences, level of skill)UnpatentableUnpatentable
Patent outcomesUS 7,499,946 unpatentable§ 103 obviousnesscites KSR · GrahamPatents in suitUS 7,499,946 - Corelogic, Inc. v. Boundary Solutions, Inc.All claims unpatentablePTAB · May 19, 2016 · IPR2015-00228 · APJ Peter P Chen · IPR · Final written decision
Claims 1–12, 14, 15, and 19 are unpatentable: claims 1–10, 12, 14, 15, and 19 as obvious over Harder and Longley, and claim 11 over Harder, Longley, and Roy.
RulingsFinal written decision- Claim Construction › Intrinsic evidence (Phillips canons) › Plain and ordinary meaning to a POSITATerm construed board ownDecided for petitioner
“In our Decision to Institute, we construed “numerical jurisdictional identifier” to mean “a number that identifies a jurisdiction.” Dec. to Inst. 7– 8. We based our construction on the only appearance of “jurisdictional identifier” in the written description of the ’957 patent: FIG. 3 illustrates a USA County Boundary Map (USACM). This is a public domain boundary file of each and every of the 3140 counties within the United States. Each of these polygons is 8 geocoded with its county name and FIPS number, a numerical jurisdictional identifier, as illustrated in the figure. Ex. 1001, 8:48–53 (emphasis added).1 Patent Owner does not challenge our construction of “jurisdictional identifier” in its Patent Owner Response, see PO Resp. 7, nor does Petitioner challenge the construction in its Reply, see Reply 7. For this Final Written Decision, after considering the complete record, we maintain our construction of “numerical jurisdictional identifier” as “a number that identifies a jurisdiction.”” slip op. at 8
- Claim Construction › Threshold & procedure › Whether a term needs construction (O2 Micro)No construction neededDecided for petitioner
“Patent Owner also proposes a construction for “national parcel map database comprising multiple jurisdictional databases which have been normalized to a common data protocol.” PO Resp. 7–15. Patent Owner’s proposal is 60 words long, and reads, “a database covering more than one state including multiple jurisdictional databases, wherein a jurisdictional database is a collection of data representing the boundaries of parcels from the jurisdiction, each of the jurisdictional databases having been received from a jurisdiction, and modified, transformed, amended or converted by a common set of one or more processes applied to all data and updates.” PO Resp. 8. Patent Owner had in its Preliminary Response proposed a different construction (“the database of individual land parcels having been 1 According to the ’957 patent, the Federal Information Processing Standards (“FIPS”) number “is used nationally to numerically identify specific county jurisdictions.” Ex. 1001, 7:27–30. 9 transformed by a set of one or more automated and/or semiautomated processes applied to data and data updates supplied by sponsoring jurisdictions using a set of rules or procedures”) for nearly the identical phrase (“multiple jurisdictional databases which have been normalized to a common data protocol”). Prelim. Resp. 15–17. We did not adopt Patent Owner’s proposed construction in our Decision to Institute, and we do not adopt its revised (and lengthier) construction in this Final Written Decision, for the reasons argued by Petitioner in its Reply (Reply 2–5) and also because the Patent Owner’s prolix proposed construction does not add clarity to the term. We decline to provide an express construction for this term or for any other terms in the claims other than discussed above.” slip op. at 9
- Skill levelSkill level board ownOther
“C. Level of Ordinary Skill in the Art Petitioner’s proposal for the level of ordinary skill in the art is “at least a bachelors degree in geographic information science, survey engineering, geomatics, or similar education, and two years of experience in a relevant field (e.g., land or geographic information science), or six years of experience in the relevant field.” Ex. 1006 (Declaration of Michael Goodchild), ¶ 11. Patent Owner has proposed that one of ordinary skill in the art would possess a “a Bachelor’s degree or higher in, GIS engineering with at least 5 years of academic or industry experience in GIS database design.” Ex. 2004 (Declaration of William Huxhold), ¶ 13. We determine that an express definition of the level of ordinary skill is not required. The level of ordinary skill in the art can be reflected in the cited prior art references. See Okajima v. Bourdeau, 261 F.3d 1350, 1355 (Fed. Cir. 2001) (“[T]he absence of specific findings on the level of skill in the art does not give rise to reversible error where the prior art itself reflects an appropriate level and a need for testimony is not shown.”) (internal quotations omitted); In re GPAC Inc., 57 F.3d 1573, 1579 (Fed. Cir. 1995). Therefore, we find the level of ordinary skill in the art to be reflected in the cited references.” slip op. at 11
- Obviousness (§103) › Graham factors (scope of art, differences, level of skill)UnpatentableUnpatentable
“universal spatial protocol using SHP files (shapefiles) (Ex. 1001, 7:31–41), and Harder’s description of how its system’s datasets are “stored in the industry-standard shapefile (.shp) format” and how the system “converts the data into shapefiles.” Pet. Reply 9–11; Ex. 1003, 24, 106. Petitioner also notes that Patent Owner’s declarant acknowledged that assembling databases according to a standard protocol was in the prior art. Pet. Reply 11; Ex. 1034, 29:15–32:17, 32:18–40:22. We agree with Petitioner and find that Harder teaches or suggests databases that have been normalized to a common data protocol. Second, Patent Owner argues about the lack of disclosure of multiple jurisdictional databases. PO Resp. 28–29. Petitioner contends multiple jurisdictional databases are taught by both Harder and Longley, which explicitly discloses a “STATES table” that is a multi-state database. Pet. Reply 13; Ex. 1015, 229, Fig. 11.2. We agree with Petitioner and find that Harder and Longley teach or suggest multiple jurisdictional databases.” slip op. at 17
Patent outcomesUS 7,092,957 unpatentableClaim construction§ 103 obviousnesscites KSR · GrahamPatents in suitUS 7,092,957
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.