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If you’re ever looking to reduce your workload around software inventions and are looking for an extra, safe pair of hands, you know where I am…
The UK IPO Hearings Database (see here) is an extremely valuable resource for anyone involved in UK patents and patent applications.
It’s especially useful for those of us working in fields where excluded matter objections are commonly raised under Section 1(2) of The (UK) Patents Act.
This includes, in particular, those of us working on software inventions.
With the UK IPO’s Hearings Database, it’s possible to filter Hearings Decisions, in which excluded matter objections were raised, based on whether those objections were overcome (allowed) or were not overcome (refused).
However, there are several practical limitations in the Hearings Database on the UK IPO’s website:
Some handy features of the table:
| BL Number | Application / Patent Number | Person(s) or Company(s) involved | Hearing Officer | Decision Date | Outcome | Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| O/0984/24 | GB2109343.0 | Avaya Management L.P. | Dr L Starrs | 15 October 2024 | Refused | The application concerns an intelligent Interactive Voice Response (IVR) navigator which can automatically respond to telephone contact centre menu choices on a customer’s behalf. The Hearing Officer applied the reasoning in Aerotel/Macrossan and considered the AT&T/CVON signposts The Hearing Officer concluded that the claimed invention is excluded from patentability under section 1(2) as it relates to a computer program as such. The application was refused under s18(3). |
| O/0734/24 | GB2201295.9 | Human Mode LLC | Mr S Brown | 2 August 2024 | Refused | The application concerns a way of modifying a virtual reality (“VR”) environment from within the VR environment. It does this by the provision of an interactive script building diagram within the VR environment which allows a user, who has no knowledge of coding, to build and configure the behaviour of an object in the VR environment. The Hearing Officer applied the reasoning in Aerotel/Macrossan and considered two of the AT&T/Cvon signposts. He found that the contribution lay entirely in matter excluded as a program for a computer as such. Having decided this, the HO declined to rule on the presentation of information exclusion. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/0689/24 | GB2202708.0 | CCL Global Enterprises Ltd | Mr A Rose | 19 July 2024 | Refused | The application concerns computer-implemented system for an improved multi-carrier shipping platform. Having followed the approach of Aerotel and considered the AT&T/CVON signposts the Hearing Officer found that the contribution was excluded under section 1(2)(c) as a method for doing business and a program for a computer as such. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/0675/24 | GB2205367.2 | Beijing Bytedance Network Technology Co., Ltd | Mr N Dowell | 16 July 2024 | Refused | The application relates to flipping a user interface on an electronic device to better suit users who prefer to read, or browse, from right to left. The described invention flips the whole user interface and then flips selected elements to the forward direction. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan four step test and considered the AT&T/CVON signposts. He found the invention to be excluded as a computer program as such, as well as relating to the presentation of information, and therefore refused the application under Section 18(3). |
| O/0557/24 | GB2016890.2 | Canon Kabushiki Kaisha | Dr L Cullen | 18 June 2024 | Allowed | The invention concerns a method of video surveillance in which search results from multiple metadata databases are collated and new video clips are created from overlapping search results to present the user with the most relevant results. The Hearing Officer (HO), following the four-step approach set down in Aerotel, found that the contribution lay in an improved video surveillance system that presents the operator with a reduced number of search results that shows only those outcomes which combine at least two of the search criteria from the multiple metadata database search. These overlapping results are easily understandable from the accompanying thumbnail image. The HO considered the AT&T signposts, as modified in HTC, and found that, in this instance, the first of the signposts suggested a technical effect as the invention made a contribution to a technical video surveillance process. The HO concluded that the invention as claimed is not excluded from patentability under section 1(2)(c) as a program for a computer. The application was remitted to the examiner to continue the examination process under Section 18 of the Act. |
| O/0538/24 | GB 2007362.3 | Tytonical Limited | Mr N Hanley | 12 June 2024 | Refused | The application concerns a transaction authorisation system. The system uses an image recognition system and a mobile phone location to identify a user at a service provider location to authorise a transaction. The Hearing Officer applied the reasoning in Aerotel/Macrossan to identify the contribution. Following the decision in Merrill Lynch he found the contribution lay was excluded as a method of doing business. He also considered the AT&T/Cvon signposts, further finding the application was also excluded as a computer program. The application was refused under Section 18(3). |
| O/0491/24 | GB2007214.6 | Spatialbuzz Limited | Mr S Brown | 29 May 2024 | Refused | The application concerns a method of fault remediation in a cellular communications network. The method involves receiving user queries concerning respective locations, defining a region based on these locations, determining an estimate of the user population in the region, and outputting a priority for fault remediation based on this data. The Hearing Officer applied the reasoning in Aerotel/Macrossan and considered the AT&T/Cvon signposts. He found that the contribution lay entirely in matter excluded as a program for a computer as such. He also briefly considered the guidance in Merrill Lynch and decided that it was also excluded as a method of doing business. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/0370/24 | GB2118630.9, GB2202901.1, GB2202902.9, GB2202903.7 | Intradiem Inc | Mr B Buchanan | 25 April 2024 | Refused | This decision concerns one ‘parent’ application and three divisional applications. All of the claimed inventions relate to a computing system for running a customer contact centre, enabling reducing agent device downtime, providing coaching to an agent device, optimising performance metrics and using machine learning to predict patterns of incoming communications to optimise operations. In all cases the Examiner had objected that the claimed inventions were excluded from patentability under Section 1(2)(c). The applicant argued that the invention provided a new way of updating a machine learning model, providing continual and tailored updates to individual computing instances in a network. They drew analogy in particular to the recent judgment in Emotional Perception AI and to PKTWO, arguing that the machine learning was of a kind that should be treated the same as an ANN, and that communication packets were analysed to subsequently adapt system characteristics. The Hearing Officer found that there was insufficient support for this interpretation of the claims and that the contributions related to the management of resources in a customer contact centre. He applied the AT&T signposts and found that all four applications related to a program for a computer and a method for doing business as such. All of the applications were refused. |
| O/0330/24 | GB2118985.7 | Borealis Technical Limited | Mr B Micklewright | 11 April 2024 | Refused | The invention involved docking an aircraft to an airport terminal by extending two passenger loading bridges in advance of the docking of the aircraft, and then making minor adjustments to the bridges so that they are fully aligned with and connected to their respective aircraft doors once the aircraft had docked. The hearing officer found that the contribution related to an administrative activity and lay solely within the excluded field of a method of doing business as such. He therefore refused the application. |
| O/0262/24 | GB2110697.6 | IGT GLOBAL SOLUTIONS CORPORATION | Mr S Brown | 27 March 2024 | Refused | The application concerns a system for the generation of both virtual and physical instant lottery tickets. The virtual tickets have multiple layers of encryption, each of which requires different, physically separated, sub-systems to decrypt. There is also a physically separate notary system to record when a request to check a virtual ticket is made. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and considered the decision in AT&T & Cvon. He decided that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter as a program for a computer and a method of doing business, as such. The application was refused under Section 18(3). |
| O/0259/24 | GB2311361.6 | Conquest Planning Inc | Mr H Jones | 26 March 2024 | Refused | The hearing officer found that the invention defined in this divisional application was generally the same as that in the parent application which had previously been refused as a method for doing business and a program for a computer. The applicant argued that the High Court judgment in Emotional Perception handed down after refusal of the parent application required a different conclusion to be drawn on the divisional. The hearing officer found that the invention did not relate to an artificial neural network as in Emotional Perception, so reached the same conclusion as the hearing officer on the parent. The application was refused. |
| O/0215/24 | GB2009320.9 | CERTIFICIAL LLC. | Miss J Pullen | 13 March 2024 | Refused | The invention concerns an automated system for checking that an insurance holder’s policy is suitable for the requirements of a requestor. A certificate of insurance can be automatically issued if the requirements are satisfied. The invention uses at least one API at an insurance company’s computer system that provides access to the insurance company’s database. The applicant submitted that the invention was technical as a new overall system had been provided. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel approach and found that the invention was excluded from patentability as both a scheme, rule or method for doing business (in light of Merrill Lynch) and a program for a computer, as such. |
| O/0189/24 | GB2118756.2 | Nextiva, Inc. | Dr L Cullen | 6 March 2024 | Refused | This invention concerns the organisation of chat-based communication systems which enable the establishment of private chat threads, or conversations, between a range of devices, such as computers, tablets and smart phones. The Hearing Officer (HO), taking account of the cited prior art, applied the four-step test from Aerotel/Macrossan and considered the modified signposts from HTC v Apple. The HO found that the actual contribution of the invention did not lie in the identification and tracking features providing improved security in text- or image-based chat-spaces but rather in setting up and allowing private communications (threads) within the public chat-space and allowing further private communications between some of those within the private chat-space (sub-threads). The invention concerns the organisation of private chat spaces and achieves this using a program for a computer to provide additional ‘nested’ layers of chat space. The HO found the subject matter of the application to be excluded under section 1(2)(c) as a computer program as such, and refused the application under Section 18(3). |
| O/0192/24 | GB2107500.7 | Motorola Mobility LLC | Mr P Thorpe | 6 March 2024 | Allowed | The invention relates to portable electronic devices having first and second display screens located on opposing major surfaces. The aim of the invention is to allow the user to be able to switch the display of content between the two display screens. The Hearing Officer accepted that the invention caused the device to operate in a new way that was technical and that the problem of being able to switch between screens was a technical problem that was solved by the invention. The claimed invention was therefore not excluded as a program for a computer as such nor did it relate to the presentation of information as such. The application was remitted back to the examiner to complete their examination. |
| O/0159/24 | GB1916844.2 | Sunmeet Singh Jolly | Mr B Buchanan | 27 February 2024 | Refused | The application relates to a means for enabling users to manage group travel and events. The claimed invention uses a custom built software application that utilises mobile smartphones and their resources along with associated computer networking and internet cloud capability, to enable tasks related to account administration, users’ choices and communication, expenditure management and notification. The Hearing Officer applied the four step Aerotel/Macrossan test and identified contributions for each independent claim. These enabled access to tools and services through an application installed on each user’s device, including devices with different native architecture, and provided the advantage of saving users time and effort and optimising the devices’ capability to access and display information. The contributions were not found to provide the required technical effect and the claimed invention was found to relate solely to a method for doing business and a program for a computer as such, so the application did not meet the requirements of section 1(2)(c). The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/0122/24 | GB1905132.5 | Mrs Yvonne Turiano & Mr Darren Turiano | Mr P Mason | 16 February 2024 | Allowed | The invention relates to a cover for an electrical backbox and associated components, used between a first and final fit of a domestic or commercial electrical installation. The applicant had been unable to persuade the examiner of the patentability of the claims over the prior art. The Hearing Officer considered the prior art and found that the invention claimed was distinguished over the prior art as being novel and that the invention was similarly inventive. It was not necessary for the Hearing Officer to resort to the Windsurfing/Pozzoli test. The application was remitted back to the Examiner for completion of processing and grant. |
| O/0110/24 | GB2577960 | Bridle IP Ltd v Anthony Thomas James | Mr H Jones | 14 February 2024 | Allowed | The claimant requested revocation of the patent on the grounds that the invention lacked inventive step over the prior art and was excluded as a mere presentation of information. The invention relates to a system for tracking the location of maintenance personnel working on or near railway tracks. Maintenance workers carry GPS tracking devices and information about their location is transmitted to a central location. A manager at the central location can view location on a digital map and can assign a virtual geographic perimeter (or geofence) for each worker. When a worker inadvertently leaves their geofence, an alert is triggered and an alarm signal or notification is sent to the worker. The map displays ELR mileage and chain information as an additional layer of detail. The hearing officer found that a map display of location was implicitly disclosed in the closest prior art. The only difference between the prior art and the invention was the inclusion of ELR information, which was found to be a standard in railway maps and within the common general knowledge of the skilled person. The invention was found to lack inventive step. In terms of excluded matter, the hearing officer found that the contribution was a system for tracking location and generating an alarm, which was not a mere presentation of information. The patent was found to be invalid and was ordered to be revoked. |
| O/0083/24 | GB1815750.3 | Muir IP | Mr P Mason | 5 February 2024 | Allowed | The invention generally relates to an escape room comprising a plurality of discrete puzzles, having a specific operating state relating to a difficulty level. The operating state is altered based on a participant characteristic which is determined prior to entry to the puzzle room and updated in real time based on the participants interaction with puzzles in said room. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan four step test and found that there was a technical contribution, due to the inclusion of the hardware that put the invention outside of excluded subject matter. Further applying the test set out in Windsurfing and reformulated by the Court in Pozolli, the Hearing Officer found that the invention as claimed involved an inventive step over the cited documents and the common general knowledge of the person skilled in the art. As such the Application was allowed and the case was remitted to the examiner for completion. |
| O/0055/24 | GB2106686.5 | Amazon Technologies Inc. | Mr P Mason | 25 January 2024 | Refused | The application relates a database management system. It sets out a method of using a SQL query to define a virtual view of a database table which comprises a mapping between a column of a virtual view and of the table. The system deals with handling a request to create an index of the virtual view. It does this by identifying the mapping of the virtual column to the table column. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan four step test and considered the AT&T/CVON signposts. He found the invention to be excluded as a computer program as such and therefore refused the application under Section 18(3). |
| O/0010/24 | GB22213917.4 | Apple Inc. | Mr H Jones | 8 January 2024 | Refused | The invention relates to relates to a method of converting a restricted payment account on a portable electronic device (e.g. a smartphone) of a first user to a new primary account. The restricted payment account is a sub-account of a primary account of a second user, for example a parent of the first user. When the first user’s portable electronic device determines that the age of the first user reaches a particular threshold, the first user is presented with a conversion option to enable conversion of the restricted account to a new primary account. The invention is said to improve personal security. The hearing officer found that invention was concerned with a non-technical improvement to a business administration process running on a computing device, so the application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/1193/23 | GB2000552.6 | Odyssey Therapeutics UK Limited | Mr B Micklewright | 19 December 2023 | Refused | The invention related to identifying a valid excited energy state of a system of interacting electrons using a hybrid system of quantum and classical computers. It applied generator and discriminator functions at a quantum computer, and, at a classical computer, compared the output and energy to relevant criteria and either updated the method and caused the method to be repeated, or identified a generated trial state as a valid energy state. The hearing officer found that proposed amendments added subject matter and therefore did not allow the amendments. He also found that the contribution lay solely in the excluded field of a program for a computer as such. He therefore excluded the application. |
| O/1161/23 | GB2015603.0 | PAG Financial International LLC | Mr H Jones | 6 December 2023 | Refused | The application relates to a dynamically adjustable dial pad for an electronic device, particularly a smart phone. Information gathered from applications used by the electronic device, for example browsing history, location information, time information and audio information, is used to predict which functionalities of the various applications a user may wish to deploy next. Those functionalities are ranked, and the ranking is used to modify the array of icons displayed on the dial pad. The hearing officer found the invention related to a program for a computer as such and the application was refused. Auxiliary claims filed in the event that the present claims were found to be excluded had been submitted as voluntary amendments. The hearing officer found that there was no basis for considering these as voluntary amendments. |
| O/1056/23 | GB2013488.8 | Halliburton Energy Services Inc. | Miss J Pullen | 7 November 2023 | Allowed | The invention relates to the use of wearable smart heads-up notification devices in the oil industry to enable real-time notification regarding one or more drilling operations, where high priority notifications are prioritised over lower priority notifications and are displayed over the field of vision of the user. The Hearing Officer found the application to be allowable as a business method or computer program, as such*. However, the Hearing Officer also found the invention to lack an inventive step. [* There appears to be a typo in the UK IPO's Summary. It appears that it should say that the Hearing Officer found the application to be allowable as NOT RELATING TO a business method or computer program, as such.] |
| O/1058/23 | GB2103745.2 | Landmark Graphics Corporation | Mr P Mason | 7 November 2023 | Refused | The invention provides a system and method to construct a seamless, scalable geological model whereby the user can adjust the scale from a planet scale down to a pore scale. By using a single model, the user is able to zoom in from a continent level down to the details of an individual well. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan four step test, considered the AT&T/CVON signposts and took notice of the Court’s decision in Halliburton Energy Services Inc's Applications. He found the invention to be excluded as a computer program as such and therefore refused the application under Section 18(3). |
| O/1057/23 | GB2111938.3 | Victory Software LTD | Mr P Mason | 7 November 2023 | Refused | The invention relates to a system for online transactions wherein potential parties to a transaction can search for desired items, express their interest and, as a result, establish a communications link between vendor and potential buyer. During the process the vendor can confirm that an item that was placed for sale remains available. Subsequent searches by further prospective buyers are restricted to those items validated by the vendor. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan four step test, considered the AT&T/CVON signposts and took notice of the Court’s decision in Halliburton Energy Services Inc's Applications. He found the invention to be excluded as a method of doing business and a computer program as such and therefore refused the application under Section 18(3). |
| O/1039/23 | GB2117919.7 | Celligence International LLC | Mr P Mason | 3 November 2023 | Refused | The invention relates to an event application configured to generate an event based on a first user request wherein the event has a set of user-specific parameters including event location, event time, type of event and event participation requirement. The event application receives an event enrolment request from a second user, wherein the event enrolment request includes data specific to that second user that will, upon comparison with the user-specific parameters, render that person eligible to enrol on the event. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan four step test, considered the AT&T/CVON signposts and found that the identified contribution of the independent claims did not make a technical contribution and thus the invention was excluded from patentability as a program for a computer as such. The application was refused under s18(3). |
| O/1018/23 | GB2003284.3 | Tracelink, Inc. | Miss J Pullen | 31 October 2023 | Refused | The application relates to the field of asset tracing, and more particularly to business-to-business accounting of an asset pedigree. The invention provides systems and methods of generating a ‘trace history’ or ‘chain of custody document’ for an asset such as a pharmaceutical product. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan four step test, considered the AT&T/CVON signposts and found that the identified contribution of the independent claims did not make a technical contribution and that the claims are excluded from patentability as a method of doing business and computer program as such. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/0993/23 | GB2114835.8 | Fujifilm Medical Systems Inc. | Mr S Brown | 24 October 2023 | Refused | The application concerns a universal web service for accessing Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine (DICOM) objects. The web service intercepts a request for a DICOM object in one format, and if the DICOM server does not support this format it creates a DICOM client within the web service to generate a message which will be accepted by the server. The response from the server is then also run through the client to reformat it to be compliant with the requestor’s interface. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and considered the decision in AT&T & Cvon. He decided that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within matter excluded as a program for a computer, as such. The application was refused under Section 18(3). |
| O/0992/23 | GB2118091.4 | Framy Inc. | Mr P Thorpe | 24 October 2023 | Refused | The invention relates to a computer implemented method of recommending location-based and/or personalized digital contents to a user through one or more hashtags displayed on a map on the user device (eg mobile phone). The method can recommend the hashtags associated with a location range that is determined based on the location of the user or it can also provide one or more hashtags associated with areas not covered by the location range. The invention was found to be excluded as a program for a computer, a method of doing business and as the presentation of information. The application was refused. |
| O/0988/23 | GB2110524.2 | Conquest Planning Inc | Mr B Micklewright | 24 October 2023 | Refused | The invention related to a tool for producing financial plans which uses AI to generate modified financial plans relating to a financial goal based on lifestyle preferences of the user and corresponding to one of a set of financial strategies. The plans are ranked and the financial strategy corresponding to the highest ranked plan is displayed to the user, who may accept or reject it. The system repeats the progress for the plan relating to the accepted strategy until the financial goal is met. The hearing officer found that the invention was excluded from patentability as a method of doing business and a program for a computer as such. He therefore refused the application. |
| O/0965/23 | GB2115878.7 | Akiva Capital Holdings Inc. | Mr B Buchanan | 11 October 2023 | Refused | The claimed invention relates to a system for conducting a continuous forward rate agreement (CFRA) in a cryptocurrency using smart contracts. The problem addressed is that smart contracts for a decentralised currency are immutable and if linked to a variable interest rate, cannot feasibly lock a coin, and fix an interest rate. The proposed solution implements a third “obligation contract” to wrap borrower and lender smart contracts and effectively control the interest rate. An additional advantage is that circumstances that would trigger the termination of a smart contract can be avoided, and the system uses a patch instead of a full program code redeployment. Overall advantages include improved security, reliability and trustworthiness. The Hearing Officer applied the four step Aerotel/Macrossan test and considered the AT&T signposts. The contribution was found to apply only to the implementation of a CFRA. The claimed invention was found not to provide the required technical effect and so related solely to a program for a computer and/or a method for doing business as such. The application did not meet the requirements of section 1(2)(c) and was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/0954/23 | GB2019779.4 | Siemens Mobility Limited | Mr P Thorpe | 5 October 2023 | Refused | The invention relates to a tool for enabling passengers to avoid travelling on excessively crowded transport services. The tool enables a passenger to select in advance which service to use based on predicted occupancy levels of a number of suitable services. Whilst the tool is described in relation to train services, it may also be applicable to other transport services, such as coach, ferry or air travel. The Hearing Officer found the invention to be excluded as both a method of doing business and as a program for a computer. The relevance of S2(3) prior art for assessing the contribution was briefly commented on. |
| O/0951/23 | GB2205210.4 | Shanke Zhao, Chunyu Zhao | Mr B Buchanan | 5 October 2023 | Refused | The claimed invention relates to a computer implemented system for making online payment transactions. A so-called “pledgeable payment system” is provided which seeks to improve upon previous online payment systems by creating a system in which buyers and sellers must register as account holders and can purchase pledgeable electronic currency with which they can transact for goods or services. The key to the claimed invention is the separation of an actual payment account from an online transaction account by means of the pledgeable payment. The Hearing Officer applied the four step Aerotel/Macrossan test and considered the AT&T signposts. The contribution reflected the provision of an allegedly safer and less risky way to conduct online transactions, but did not include technical advances in user authentication or security of data communications. The claimed invention was found not to provide the required technical effect and so related solely to a program for a computer and/or a method for doing business as such. The application did not meet the requirements of section 1(2)(c) and was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/0879/23 | GB2215689.7 | Grzegorz Malewicz | Miss J Pullen | 18 September 2023 | Refused | The claimed invention relates to methods of determining a “smoothed” “description of travel” (such as distance, fare or directions) between two locations using a public transportation system. The invention uses pre-computed and pre-stored information to return query results faster than methods which rely solely upon on-demand calculations. The hearing officer considered whether the invention made a technical contribution in light of the Aerotel approach and the HTC/AT&T signposts. The Hearing Officer found that there was no technical contribution and refused the application since the invention was excluded from patentability as a program for a computer, as such. |
| O/0873/23 | GB2107804.3 | Australian Bond Exchange Holdings Limited | Mr B Buchanan | 15 September 2023 | Refused | The claimed application relates to the settlement of trades in an exchange. The trades may relate to securities such as stocks, cash or derivatives. In the prior art trades are cleared after the transaction is agreed which invokes cost, risk and delay. The claimed invention implements real-time settlement of deals by requiring clients to pre-register including validation of their position. The applicant argued that as a consequence of the system enabling the real-time settlement of trades, technical prejudice is overcome, risk and margin are reduced, and the requirement for delayed batch-processing is removed. This results in more efficient completion of deals and means that processing steps and hardware required for current clearing and settlement of trades are obviated which provides a technical effect. The Hearing Officer applied the AerotelMacrossan test and considered the HTC/Apple signposts. He concluded that the claimed invention related to a method for doing business and program for a computer as such and was excluded from patentability under section 1(2)(c). The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/0874/23 | GB2106687.3 | AMAZON TECHNOLOGIES, INC | Mr H Jones | 13 September 2023 | Allowed | The application relates to cryptographic verification of ledger-based database management systems. A cryptographic hash tree (or signature tree) structure provides independent verification that the history of a transaction is unaltered, the hash values being based on an attribute of the transactions. The hash tree is published with both stable and unstable nodes, allowing third party verification of transactions stored in the ledger. Publishing unstable nodes means that it is possible for third parties to verify recent transactions before their respective hash values become stable, provide quicker verification. Following the Aerotel steps, the hearing officer found the contribution to be technical and remitted the application to the examiner for grant action. |
| O/0851/23 | GB2104196.7 | Peng Choo | Mr B Micklewright | 8 September 2023 | Refused | The invention related to a development environment for creation of a new control webpage for a controller device, whereby the development environment is stored in the controller device and is provided in a user device where it could, for example, be accessible from within a web browser. The hearing officer found that the claimed invention was excluded from patentability as a program for a computer as such, and also lacked novelty. He therefore refused the application. |
| O/0773/23 | GB2016577.5 | Bytemark Inc | Mr B Micklewright | 14 August 2023 | Refused | The invention related to a transit system for transporting passengers using autonomous vehicles. Once a user selects a destination on a mobile application the application selects a transit station and, by analysing various data, commands an autonomous vehicle to drive to the transit station by the expected time of arrival of the user. A ticketless system was also claimed. The hearing officer found that the contribution lay in the excluded fields of a program for a computer as such and a method of doing business as such. He therefore refused the application. |
| O/0738/23 | GB2110277.7 | Pearson Education, Inc. | Mr H Jones | 1 August 2023 | Refused | The invention relates to relates to an electronic reader user interface. The electronic reader has a corpus of electronic content (such as an electronic version of a magazine or a book). The invention presents a navigation bar on the user interface, showing a continuous series of thumbnail images, each corresponding to a section of the corpus. The thumbnail images have a height proportional to the length of the section, and visually reflect the structure and type of content in the section. The navigation bar indicates the current reading position in the corpus and allows the user to navigate to other parts of the corpus. The Hearing Officer applied the four step Aerotel/Macrossan test and considered the AT&T signposts. The contribution reflected the features of the electronic user interface and the benefits in allowing the reader to understand their current place in a corpus of electronic content and quickly recognise and navigate to other parts of the corpus. It was found not to provide the required technical effect and the claimed invention was found to relate solely to a program for a computer as such. The application did not meet the requirements of section 1(2)(c) and was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/0733/23 | GB1819590.9 | ImageNPay UK Limited | Mr P Thorpe | 31 July 2023 | Refused | The invention relates to using a user electronic device (e.g. a mobile phone) to provide audio/haptic feedback in relation to a digitised transaction card being selected or used to perform a transaction. User preference information relating to the digital wallet application is obtained and communicated to a management server which returns a notification command. The notification command determines what kind of audio or haptic feedback is provided in relation to the specific digitised transaction card (e.g. a particular sound or vibration pattern). When the digital wallet application is executed (for the purpose of selecting the specific digitised transaction card or using it to perform a transaction) the audio/haptic output unit is controlled to provide the audio/haptic feedback determined by the received notification command. The hearing officer found the invention to be excluded as a method of doing business, the presentation of information and as a program for a computer as such. |
| O/0706/23 | GB1916652.9 | Prevayl Innovations Limited | Miss J Pullen | 24 July 2023 | Refused | The invention relates to an electronics arrangement that is used to provide a physiological classification of a user from sensor data. The sensor data is obtained via a wearable article. The sensor data is then processed and a machine-learned model is used to generate the physiological classification. It is then determined if the machine-learned model should be updated. If the model is updated, data related to the new machine-learned model is transmitted to an external computer. The external computer performs an updating process on the model and the updated physiological classification model is returned. The hearing officer assessed the invention using the Aerotel approach. The hearing officer considered the benefits of the invention but found that it made no additional improvement to the known advantages of the technologies used to implement the claimed invention. This meant that the actual contribution made by the invention related only to a program for a computer, as such. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/0705/23 | GB2103723.9 | Capital One Services, LLC | Miss J Pullen | 24 July 2023 | Refused | The invention relates to computer-implemented method and systems for adaptive Artificial Intelligence (AI) token verification that obtains training data for a token verification model via three different processes. The method and systems verify whether instructions to perform operations are malign or genuine based the verification model, either block or grant the request respectively, followed by updating the verification model based on the client responding from a verified client device to a verification prompt, or a challenge associated with a verification being received from a client device, or determining that no verification challenge and no verification data have been received from the client device during a predetermined time interval. The Hearing Officer applied the four step Aerotel/Macrossan test and considered the AT&T signposts. It was found not to provide the required technical effect and the claimed invention was found to relate solely to a program for a computer as such. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/0703/23 | GB1803928.9 | Global Media IP Limited | Mr B Micklewright | 24 July 2023 | Refused | The invention related to attributing associations between interstitial content such as advertisements in streamed media content and subsequent activity performed by the media consumer, for example making a purchase associated with the product. Data relating to the media consumer, the interstitial content and the subsequent activity is stored and correlated on a remote server. The hearing officer found that the claimed invention did not involve an inventive step and was excluded from patentability as a method of doing business and a program for a computer as such. He therefore refused the application. |
| O/0702/23 | GB2016335.8 | Obrist Closures Switzerland Gmbh | Mr B Micklewright | 21 July 2023 | Refused | The invention relates to means for enabling audits of enterprise data management systems, for instance to prove compliance with regulations. Blockchain add-ons are present in various components of an enterprise network (such as in backup systems, storage systems and data management systems), and these define a blockchain network that creates a secure ledger of all of the enterprise data transactions. The blockchain network includes an auditing node which receives records of all the enterprise data transactions as part of the ledger. The auditing node can be securely accessed and used by an external auditing service. The Hearing Officer applied the four step Aerotel/Macrossan test and considered the AT&T signposts. The alleged contribution reflected the blockchain network being an enterprise network, the immutability of the audited record by virtue of it being a blockchain ledger and the provision of secure third-party access to the ledger via a node in a cloud auditing service. It was found not to provide the required technical effect and the claimed invention was found to relate solely to a method for doing business and a program for a computer as such, so the application did not meet the requirements of section 1(2)(c). The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/0649/23 | GB2110709.9 | EMC IP Holding Company LLC | Mr B Buchanan | 10 July 2023 | Refused | The invention relates to means for enabling audits of enterprise data management systems, for instance to prove compliance with regulations. Blockchain add-ons are present in various components of an enterprise network (such as in backup systems, storage systems and data management systems), and these define a blockchain network that creates a secure ledger of all of the enterprise data transactions. The blockchain network includes an auditing node which receives records of all the enterprise data transactions as part of the ledger. The auditing node can be securely accessed and used by an external auditing service. The Hearing Officer applied the four step Aerotel/Macrossan test and considered the AT&T signposts. The alleged contribution reflected the blockchain network being an enterprise network, the immutability of the audited record by virtue of it being a blockchain ledger and the provision of secure third-party access to the ledger via a node in a cloud auditing service. It was found not to provide the required technical effect and the claimed invention was found to relate solely to a method for doing business and a program for a computer as such, so the application did not meet the requirements of section 1(2)(c). The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/0657/23 | GB2114284.9 | Optum Inc | Mr S Brown | 4 July 2023 | Refused | The application concerns using a machine learning model to predict a disease risk score for a patient. The machine learning model is graph based and is generated using genetic programming operations based on patient data. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and considered the decision in AT&T & Cvon. He also considered the issue of ‘product by process’ and referred to the decision in kirin Amgen. He decided that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter as a program for a computer, as such. The application was refused under Section 18(3). |
| O/0626/23 | GB1816750.2 | ImageNPay UK Limited | Mr S Brown | 3 July 2023 | Refused | The application concerns a method for transferring a digital asset from a first user to a second user then supplying the second user with a graphic asset associated with the digital asset. This allows digitised transaction cards (e.g. payment cards, loyalty cards) to be associated with specific graphical images in a digital wallet. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and considered the decision in AT&T & Cvon. He decided that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter as a program for a computer and a method of doing business, as such. The application was refused under Section 18(3). |
| O/0566/23 | GB2106760.8 | Tomas Gorny | Mr H Jones | 19 June 2023 | Refused | The application relates to a system and method of assigning “work” tickets to agents of customer services centres, the agents being assigned tickets that represent customer issues that they are tasked with resolving. A computer-implemented system is employed to improve the allocation of tickets to agents, thereby improving efficiency of process and levels of customer satisfaction. The hearing officer found this to be a business consideration implemented by way of a computer program, so refused the application. |
| O/0554/23 | GB2106819.2 | IAA, Inc. | Mr B Micklewright | 14 June 2023 | Refused | The invention related to automatically dispatching work assignments to tow service providers. The hearing officer found that the improvements were to an administrative process, not to a technical process, implemented on a computer. He therefore found that the invention lay solely in the excluded fields of a program for a computer as such and a method of doing business as such and refused the application. |
| O/0517/23 | GB2111711.4 | Nielsen Consumer LLC | Mr H Jones | 2 June 2023 | Refused | The application relates to the field of market research and in particular to methods/systems for identifying market strategies that involve mining through large amounts of data, with an aim of reducing the time taken by human analysts performing the same task using traditional tools. The hearing officer found this to be a business consideration implemented by way of a computer program, so refused the application. |
| O/0489/23 | GB1803445.4 | Robert Bosch GmbH | Mr P Thorpe | 30 May 2023 | Refused | The application relates to a method which aims to efficiently generate parking spaces for motor vehicles generated. This is achieved by using at certain times and under certain conditions a region of the road which is normally available as a driving area for driving for motor vehicles for parking. The determination of whether there is a need for additional parking spaces is based on a number of factors. These include for example historical parking data, recent requests from drivers for parking and whether there is a particular event or holiday scheduled for the area that might generate additional demand for parking. Applying Aerotel, the Hearing Officer found the invention to be excluded as a method of doing business and as a program for a computer. The application was refused. |
| O/0461/23 | GB1903234.1 | IGT Global Solutions Corporation & IGT | Mr H Jones | 17 May 2023 | Refused | The application relates to the generation, distribution, tracking and redemption of lottery tickets in a lottery system. In accordance with the guidance set out by the Court of Appeal in Aerotel, the hearing officer found that the contribution made by the invention related to the use of conventional blockchain technology in a lottery system in order to improve resistance to tampering. The hearing officer found this to be a business consideration implemented by way of a computer program, so refused the application. |
| O/0429/23 | GB2104012.6 | Equinedge, LLC | Miss J Pullen | 9 May 2023 | Refused | The application relates generally to pari-mutuel horse race betting and, more particularly, to a user interface for generating a ticket for horse race betting. The invention provides systems and methods for generating a graphical user interface for horse race betting; the graphical user interface comprising an automatic ticket generation button which marks horses as selected to win races based on predicted win percentages of the horses, wherein the marked horses maximizes a function of a predicted win percentage without causing a number of bets times the bet amount to exceed the maximum ticket price; thus allowing a user to easier place numerous bets horse races. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan four step test, considered the AT&T/CVON signposts and found that the identified contribution of the independent claims did not make a technical contribution and that the claims are excluded from patentability as a method of doing business, a program for a computer, a method of playing a game and the presentation of information as such. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/0414/23 | GB1813684.6 | ImageNPay UK Limited | Mr P Thorpe | 4 May 2023 | Refused | The invention relates to a method and system for enabling a user to purchase a product associated with a brand after viewing a media item, such as an image or video, on social media. The media item is, for example, an endorsement or sponsorship of the product and is distributed via a content distributor server. The Hearing Officer found the claimed invention to be excluded as a method of doing business and as a program for a computer. The application was refused |
| O/0411/23 | GB2012345.1 | CITA - The Wireless Association | Mr H Jones | 3 May 2023 | Refused | The application relates to testing candidate Internet-of-Things (IoT) devices sequentially against first, second and third sets of cyber security criteria, and issuing certificates if the device passes the tests. One of the tests can include a check as to whether the device issues an alert if tampered. The hearing officer found that assigning a level of certification to IoT devices based on known tests is an administrative task and that the contribution fell within the scope of the business method exclusion. When performed on a suitably programmed computer, he also found the method to be fall within the computer program exclusion. The application was refused. |
| O/0376/23 | GB2113830.0 | International Business Machines Corporation | Mr B Micklewright | 20 April 2023 | Refused | The invention related to digital twin based asset upgrade management whereby upcoming changes for the assets are received through a continuous feed of information and used to update digital twins (virtual representations of physical objects), which are used to calculate usage metrics for the assets. These, along with the upcoming changes, are used in the creation of a report concerning dependencies. The hearing officer found that the claimed invention, and also the invention claimed in a second claim set, were excluded from patentability as a program for a computer as such and a method of doing business as such. He therefore refused the application. |
| O/0371/23 | GB1720784.6 | GOOGLE LLC | Mr P Mason | 19 April 2023 | Refused | The invention relates, generally, to the field of machine learning models wherein the machine learning model receives a request and produces a decision. The invention attempts to ensure that the machine learning model does not iterate away from producing high quality decisions by comparing the machine learning output with a baseline assurance value provided by a statistical model. This comparison influences the machine learning model applied to subsequent requests. The Hearing Officer applied the four-step approach set out in the Court of Appeal judgment in Aerotel, and considered the signposts provided by AT&T/CVON. The Hearing Officer found the contribution fell solely within the excluded matter as a computer programme as such. The application was refused. |
| O/0315/23 | GB1807232.2 | WNS Global Services (UK) Limited | Mr P Mason | 30 March 2023 | Refused | The invention relates to the gathering of raw data relating to a brand from various sources across the internet and, in particular, social media sites. The raw data is classified, interpreted and weighted to determine a social equity index which provides an indication of how well regarded a particular brand is. This quantifiable measure of the social reputation of a brand can be compared against an industry benchmark and/or other similar brands. This provides insights into a brands real-time reputation and can form the basis for future business decisions. The Hearing Officer applied the four-step approach set out in Aerotel/Macrossan and considered the five signposts set out in AT&T/CVON. He found the invention to be excluded as a method of doing business and a computer program as such and therefore refused the application under Section 18(3). |
| O/0312/23 | GB1709984.7 | Lingo App Ltd. | Mr B Buchanan | 29 March 2023 | Refused | The application relates to a means for enabling a message to be sent from a user to one or more recipients, and translated into a language associated with each recipient, without the sender specifying the originating or recipient language. The message is sent along with an indication of a recipient, which is used to determine the recipient language based on a user profile. The Hearing Officer assessed and dismissed an objection to added matter in the hearing, and heard arguments relating to excluded matter and novelty. In deciding whether the claimed invention was patentable he applied the four step Aerotel/Macrossan test and considered the AT&T signposts. The alleged contribution reflected the steps of sending a message together with an indication of the intended recipients, determining a recipient language, translating the message if required and delivering it to each recipient device. It was found not to provide the required technical effect and the claimed invention was found to relate solely to a program for a computer as such, so the application did not meet the requirements of section 1(2)(c). Novelty was briefly considered but in view of the incomplete search and indefinite support for a differentiating characteristic, was not formally decided. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/0310/23 | GB1804674.8 | Cathal Greaney | Mr B Micklewright | 28 March 2023 | Refused | The invention related to improving border control systems by providing customs officials with a risk score for a particular container, the risk score based on periodic updates on the location of the container and on other parameters relating to the container. The customs official would then determine which containers to inspect based on the risk score. The hearing officer found that the claimed invention did not involve an inventive step over the cited prior art and also was excluded from patentability as a method of doing business and a program for a computer as such. He therefore refused the application. |
| O/0292/23 | GB2211038.1 | Apple Inc. | Mr B Micklewright | 21 March 2023 | Refused | The invention related to a payment transaction system for a device such as a set-top box or smart TV whereby a proximate device is selected which is most likely to perform the payment transaction. The hearing officer found that the invention related to a method for doing business and a program for a computer as such and therefore refused the application. |
| O/0284/23 | GB2016046.1 | Kinaxis Inc | Mr S Brown | 16 March 2023 | Refused | The application concerns a system which selects one of a plurality of machine learning models to forecast the sales of products. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and considered the guidance in Halliburton and Merrill Lynch, and decided that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter as a method of doing business. He also considered the decision in AT&T & Cvon and concluded that the contribution was also excluded as a program for a computer. The application was refused under Section 18(3). |
| O/0276/23 | GB1912645.7 | Canon Kabushiki Kaisha | Dr L Cullen | 15 March 2023 | Refused | The application relates to changing the language to be used by a user interacting with electronic apparatus such as a smartphone. In some cases the language of the voice of a user can be recognised by the apparatus and the setting of the apparatus may be changed to that language but only after confirmation from the user. In other cases the language is changed by the user choosing it directly. Thus the language being used is only changed by positive intervention of a user. The Hearing Officer (HO) applied the four-step test from Aerotel/Macrossan and considered the modified signposts from HTC v Apple. Having done so he found the subject matter of the application to be excluded under section 1(2)(c) as a computer program as such. The relevance of IPO decision BL O/107/20 was considered but did not alter the view of the HO. In light of the finding on excluded matter, the HO did not go on to consider the issue of inventive step. |
| O/0214/23 | GB1808015.0 | Global Design Corporation Ltd. | Mr B Buchanan | 28 February 2023 | Refused | The application relates to a means for providing a better estimate of energy consumption (and the associated charges) of an energy user. The claimed invention obtains the amount and cost of a user’s past energy consumption during a previous billing period. The system then estimates a “consumption profile” for a user and obtains tariff information from a range of energy providers. The system compares estimated equivalent costs for different tariffs with the actual cost of the energy used. The system thereby identifies the “best fit” tariff that is likely to be the tariff the user is subscribed to. Once this has been identified, the system can present to a user the likely cost of their next bill based on smart meter readings. The Hearing Officer applied the four step Aerotel/Macrossan test and considered the AT&T signposts. The alleged contribution reflected the steps carried out to process large amounts of data using mathematical steps. It was found not to provide the required technical effect and the claimed invention was found to relate solely to a method for doing business and a program for a computer as such, so the application did not meet the requirements of section 1(2)(c). The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/0150/23 | GB1807232.2 | Imosphere Ltd | Mr P Mason | 9 February 2023 | Refused | The invention relates to a computer-implemented method of operating a database system. It addresses the problem of managing data from multiple database systems, each organised according to a different data model. A staging database is populated with data from the multiple source databases which is then used to generate a database having a predetermined hierarchical structure. This provides a single interface for a user to interact with. The Hearing Officer applied the four-step approach set out in Aerotel/Macrossan and considered the five signposts set out in AT&T/CVON. He found the invention to be excluded as a computer program and therefore refused the application under Section 18(3). |
| O/0142/23 | GB2210837.7 | Fisher-Rosemount Systems, Inc | Mr P Mason | 8 February 2023 | Allowed | The invention relates to a portable device used for communicating with distinct field device (i.e. sensors, valves, transmitters, positioners, etc.) of an industrial plant, wherein the devises operate over different communication protocols. The portable device has a swappable module associated with the discrete devices and a help application that instructs a user on a specific functionality of the field device. In applying the four-step approach set out in the Court of Appeal judgment in Aerotel the Hearing Officer found that the hardware was unconventional and therefore was included in the contribution. As such, he found the invention to be allowable and remitted the case to the examiner. |
| O/0115/23 | GB1720824.0 | Google LLC | Miss J Pullen | 3 February 2023 | Refused | The invention relates to a method, system and computer program for generating and providing user visit analytics data for a store owner while maintaining privacy for customers of the store. User devices, such as smartphones, receive signals from store devices which are installed in a physical storefront of a store when the user visits the store. The signals include store identifiers which are logged and aggregated by the user devices. When a threshold number of store identifiers has been reached, the user device transmits aggregated store visit data to an analytics server. The user device takes processing steps to maintain user privacy, such as generalising time data related to visits and removing any user device identifier from the data or using a random device identifier. The hearing officer assessed the invention using the Aerotel approach and, using the guidance of Merrill Lynch, found the invention to be excluded as a scheme, rule or method for doing business, as such. Any improvements to data security relied upon by the applicant were found to be related only to the business method provided by the present invention. The invention was also found to be excluded as a program for a computer. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/0097/23 | GB1900670.9 | Avaya Inc. | Mr P Thorpe | 1 February 2023 | Refused | The invention relates to a method which aims to prevent DoS attacks. In particular, a trusted third party in the form of a certification authority (“CA”) 120 receives a request to facilitate a blockchain operation between one device 110 and another device 105, sends a message back to the requesting device that includes a prompt for the requesting device to meet one or more conditions. The CA 120 completes the requested blockchain operation when the one or more conditions are met and denies the request if they are not met. Therefore, for example where the condition is a payment of a fee, requests of entities that have not paid the fee are ignored to prevent DoS attacks. The invention was found to be lacking an inventive step and was also excluded as a method of doing business. The application was refused. |
| O/0089/23 | GB2003326.2 | Hitachi Vantara LLC | Mr H Jones | 30 January 2023 | Refused | The application relates to using an inclusion dependency system for establishing primary key-foreign key relationships in a database, which reduces the number of fetches of data from memory and results in a less computationally intensive and time consuming process. The hearing officer found the invention to be excluded as a computer program as such, so refused the application. |
| O/0085/23 | GB1820346.3 | Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd | Miss J Pullen | 27 January 2023 | Refused | The invention relates to determining a cause of a trend in vital sign data of a subject over a time period, in particular, determining whether a user has performed a certain action such as taking specified medication. The vital sign data is analysed to determine a trend over time and a most likely cause of the trend over is determined dependent on one or more stored weights each associated with one or more possible causes, including missed medication. A machine learning algorithm is used to assign weights to possible causes. If the most likely cause is determined to be a missed medication event an alert can be outputted. The hearing officer found that the contribution lay in the excluded field of a program for a computer as such and therefore refused the application. |
| O/0033/23 | GB1916397.1 | GE-Hitachi Nuclear Energy Americas, LLC | Mr S Brown | 13 January 2023 | Refused | The application concerns facilitating the modelling of a process plant by taking a piping and instrumentation diagram (PID) of the plant stored in an XML file and automatically generating a component object data structure for each element in the file, accessing information about the attributes of these components, and then generating data which is used by known modelling software to generate a model of said plant. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and considered the AT&T signposts and decided that the contribution made by the invention was excluded as a program for a computer, as such. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/0007/23 | GB2020338.6 | Teledyne FLIR Commercial Systems, Inc | Mr H Jones | 4 January 2023 | Allowed | The application relates to using a neural network for image identification and classification, and the aim of the invention is to improve the accuracy of identification by generating synthetic images to be used as further training data for the neural network. The examiner considered the invention to be excluded as a program for a computer and that it had not been described in sufficient detail for a skilled person to put it into effect. The hearing officer found that the invention performed a specific technical task outside of a computer and that in accordance with caselaw it should be regarded as a patentable invention. The hearing officer also considered the question of sufficiency of disclosure and concluded that the description did disclose the invention in sufficient detail for it to be performed by a person skilled in the art. The application was remitted to the examiner to complete examination. |
| O/999/22 | GB 2005530.7 | Appdome Ltd | Mr P Mason | 15 November 2022 | Refused | The invention relates to a mobile application development tool that provides a network based automated application fusion platform (AFP) that allows integration of multiple third party functions into a mobile application. The invention intends to reduce the mobile application development cycle by providing an AFP that does not require a source code, instead the AFP allows a developer to select desired plugins which are then fused to an application. The Hearing Officer applied the four-step approach set out in the Court of Appeal judgment in Aerotel, and considered the signposts provided by AT&T/CVON. The Hearing Officer found the contribution fell solely within the excluded matter as a computer programme as such. The application was refused. |
| O/961/22 | GB 1818409.3 | Motorola Solutions Inc | Mr P Mason | 4 November 2022 | Allowed | The application is concerned with maintaining a chain of custody for assets uploaded to a central system. Specifically, it is a system for verifying the transfer of a digital asset, such as an image file, from a portable electronic device to a data warehouse. When verified the system issues a “permission to delete message” to the portable electronic device. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and took notice of the decisions made by the court in Gemstar v Virgin, Protecting the Kids the World Over and Lantana. He concluded that the inclusion of the verification step as part of the system was not excluded and remitted the application to the Examiner for further examination. |
| O/957/22 | GB1917570.2 | Luther Systems | Mr S Brown | 3 November 2022 | Refused | The application concerns the use of “blockchain” technology to manage an interest rate swap contract. Specifically, a management computer uses “blockchain” to hold details of pending events in the contract and thereby to generate a net amount for payment under the contract. In this way the system manages the interest rate swap with assurance being provided by the “blockchain” thus avoiding the need for a trusted third party. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and considered the Court of Appeal decision in Merrill Lynch’s Application. He decided that the contribution made by the invention was excluded as a method of doing business as such. The Hearing Officer then also briefly considered the signposts laid out in HTC v Apple and concluded that the contribution was also excluded as a program for a computer. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/938/22 | GB1617637.2 | Endura Limited | Dr L Cullen | 28 October 2022 | Allowed | This invention concerns optimising the aerodynamic efficiency of an athlete by modelling the effects on the aerodynamics of this athlete, of the articles of clothing and of the features of the planned route The Hearing Officer (HO) followed the four step Aerotel test to determine whether there was a technical contribution. The HO, taking note of the judgements in Halliburton and PTKWO while applying the AT&T signposts as modified in HTC, found that, in this instance, the first of the signposts suggested a technical effect . The HO considered the contribution of the invention as a whole and concluded that simulating the best article to use for the proposed route based on the characteristics of the cyclist and the clothing apparel and then selecting this article to wear was indeed a technical process The HO concluded that the claims presently on file do not define a program for a computer excluded from patentability under section 1(2)(c). The application was remitted to the examiner for further processing. |
| O/925/22 | GB1614145.9 | Tik Tok Technologies Ltd | Dr L Cullen | 25 October 2022 | Refused | The invention relates to a computer program for use in betting. It displays groups of odds relating to football matches on a chronometric dial and allows the user to submit a bet in response to a choice made by this user. It is proposed that this saves the user time and effort in placing complex bets. In considering the invention as claimed, the Hearing Officer (HO) agreed with the examiner’s view on added matter under s76(3) and, taking account of the added matter, on the applicant’s failure to disclose the invention in a manner clear enough and complete enough for it to be performed by person skilled in the art as required under section 14(3). The HO also agreed with the examiner’s reasoning using the four step Aerotel test and applying the AT&T signposts as modified in HTC to analyse the contribution and conclude that the invention as claimed did not provide the required technical effect. The invention as claimed related solely to a method for doing business and a program for a computer as such. As the application did not meet the requirements of section 1(2)(c), it was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/894/22 | GB2112654.5 | International Business Machines Corporation | Mr B Micklewright | 17 October 2022 | Refused | The invention related to identifying patterns and relations between items in transactions where each processing node generated local frequency pattern trees which were then used to generate global conditional frequency pattern trees which are distributed to each processing node so that patterns, rules and relations between the items can be generated. The hearing officer found the invention to be excluded as a program for a computer as such and a method of doing business as such. He therefore refused the application. |
| O/886/22 | GB1705333.1 | Cyacomb Limited | Dr L Cullen | 12 October 2022 | Refused | This invention is in the field of management of confidential data and concerns several aspects of the handling of a representative database generated from a database comprising secure data elements The Hearing Officer (HO), applying the four-step Aerotel test, found that the alleged contribution was a method of processing a data request to a secure database made up of secure elements that are secure representations of fragments of confidential data stored within the database. The output of the processing of the management request is an identified portion of the secure data which is sent to the requesting entity such that the secure elements can be used to detect the presence of specific data elements without having access to the original data elements. The secure database is created prior to the receipt of the data request.” Considering this contribution in light of the AT&T signposts as modified in HTC, the hearing officer found that this contribution was not technical in nature. The HO also considered the contribution in relation to other closely related independent claims on file. These define processes necessary for the maintenance or administration of the representation database (referred to by claim 1) and relate to third party requests to alter the representation database (by data addition in claim 28 or by updating the database in claim 29). The alleged contribution, insofar as these claims are concerned, was found to be a method to add to or maintain a representation database. Considering this contribution in light of the AT&T signposts as modified in HTC, the HO determined that it was not technical in nature. As the application as claimed was found not to meet the requirements of sections 1(2)(c) of the Act, it was refused under section 18(3) of the Act. |
| O/841/22 | GB1913243.0, GB1915026.7 | AON Risk Services, Inc. of Maryland | Mr H Jones | 29 September 2022 | Refused | The inventions of these two applications relate to receiving a plurality of documents, particularly patent documents, performing some pre-processing of the text of those documents, and thereby generating some analysis to present to a user. GB1915026.7 relates to determining scores relating to breadth of monopoly claim, the number of similar documents that pre-date the patent and also the nature of subject-matter it relates to. GB1913243.0 relates to being able to determine the breadth of document portions compared to other portions, for example in determining whether one monopoly claim is broader than another. The Hearing Officer applied the four-step approach set out in Aerotel/Macrossan and used the five signposts set out in AT&T/CVON. He found the inventions to be excluded, and therefore refused both applications. |
| O/838/22 | GB1915773.4 | Fujifilm Medial Systems USA Inc | Miss J Pullen | 29 September 2022 | Refused | The application relates to configuring and displaying a worklist of healthcare studies based on findings from automated image analysis. The method and system are said to allow physicians to easily see the studies that have been received according to a user-specified priority at which they need to be reviewed. The worklist includes both unread and read healthcare studies arranged according to priority. The hearing officer found that the invention was excluded from patentability as a program for a computer and a method of doing business. The application was refused. |
| O/829/22 | GB2116574.1 | Google LLC | Dr L Cullen | 26 September 2022 | Refused | This invention relates to a method for providing a reply to an electronic communication where a number of possibilities for the reply content are selected for presentation via a computing device for inclusion in the reply to the electronic communication. The Hearing Officer, applying the four-step Aerotel test, found that the contribution made by the application was an improved communication process between two users, the alleged improvement lying in a faster and more accurate process for determining and presenting to a user two alternative replies. Considering this contribution in light of the AT&T signposts as modified in HTC, the hearing officer found that this contribution was not technical in nature. The Hearing officer also considered that preparing and presenting alternative replies to communications based on features of those communications and subsequently sending a selected one of the alternatives is, essentially, an administrative act and as such it falls within the business method exclusion As the application was found not to meet the requirements of sections 1(2)(c) of the Act, it was refused under section 18(3) of the Act. |
| O/811/22 | GB1719887.0 | Halliburton Energy Services, Inc. | Mr B Micklewright | 21 September 2022 | Refused | The invention related to using a cognitive computer to facilitate a meeting to discuss the placement of a new well in oilfield operations. The cognitive computer facilitates the meeting by automatically determining that a new well is being planned, as well as making a recommendation regarding an optimal drilling site. The hearing officer found that there was no synergy between two integers of the claim, and each integer was obvious over the cited prior art. The claim was therefore a collocation of obvious features and lacked an inventive step. The hearing officer also found that the invention was excluded from patentability as a program for a computer as such and a method of doing business as such. He therefore refused the application. |
| O/774/22 | GB1916451.6 | Flatiron Health, Inc | Mr S Brown | 8 September 2022 | Refused | The application concerns extracting information from unstructured medical data, deriving feature vectors and providing them to a machine learning model. The model provides an output indicating whether an individual should be included in a cohort of individuals for participation in a medical trial. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and considered the signposts laid out in HTC v Apple. He also considered Halliburton, Lenovo and the Office’s decision in Innoplexus (BL O/814/21). He decided that the contribution made by the invention was excluded as a program for a computer and a method of doing business as such. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/767/22 | GB1419547.3 | truRating Limited | Mr P Thorpe | 7 September 2022 | Refused | The invention relates to obtaining feedback in the service industry from customers at the point of sale, using PIN entry devices and seeks to address the problem of these devices being vulnerable to the fraudulent acquisition of the customer's PIN by a hacker. The invention allows for a single numeric key press to be accepted following the display of unapproved text. A second (and subsequent) single numeric key press is only accepted in response to a second (and subsequent) display of unapproved text after a time delay following display of the text. The Hearing Officer found the invention to be inventive over the cited prior art but excluded as a program for a computer. The application was refused. |
| O/764/22 | GB2108136.9, GB2108137.7 | Wei Xu | Mr B Buchanan | 6 September 2022 | Refused | The applications are two of nine divisionals which use mobile devices, servers and a wireless network to enable transactions and provide services in different environments. The issue to be decided in each case was whether the claims define excluded subject matter and provide an inventive step. The applications were heard together as they relate to similar inventive concepts and the arguments and objections are likewise similar. In both inventions a backend server acts as a “broker”. By providing verification and communication via the backend server, security and access are allegedly enhanced. In arguing these points, the Attorney referred to the prior art, a number of precedents and office decisions and argued that the claimed invention was non-obvious and solved a problem using a new arrangement of hardware. The Hearing Officer applied the Windsurfing/Pozzoli and Aerotel/Macrossan tests and considered the AT&T signposts. The claims were found to be inventive but not to provide the required technical effect and to relate solely to a program for a computer and a method for doing business as such, so the applications did not meet the requirements of section 1(2)(c). The applications were refused under section 18(3). |
| O/733/22 | GB1714501.2 | Hitachi Vantara LLC | Mr B Micklewright | 26 August 2022 | Refused | The invention related to identifying relationships between data which has come from different data collections by using a seed value to identify records which may potentially have common values. The hearing officer found that there was no technical contribution and the invention lay wholly in the excluded field of a program for a computer as such. He therefore refused the application. |
| O/732/22 | GB1719438.2 | Walmart Apollo, LLC | Mr B Buchanan | 26 August 2022 | Refused | The application relates to a system for enabling a user to choose and personalise an item to be made by additive manufacturing, such as 3D printing. The item is made according to a model which a user selects and configures according to preferences and customisation. The preferences may include physical properties such as the material to be used, and the resolution or detail. They may also include characteristics such as timescales, pick-up location and price. Customisation may relate to the incorporation of text, symbols or additional printed elements. The Hearing Officer applied the four step Aerotel/Macrossan test and considered the AT&T signposts. In identifying the actual contribution it was determined that the hardware, including the additive manufacturing platforms, did not add anything but that taking account of physical model preferences and platform characteristics could fall within some embodiments. However, the claim was not so limited, so some embodiments related to only business considerations. As a consequence, the contribution was found not to provide the required technical effect and the claimed invention was found to relate solely to a method for doing business and a program for a computer as such, so the application did not meet the requirements of section 1(2)(c). The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/662/22 | GB1818377.2 | Arris Enterprises LLC | Mr P Thorpe | 05 August 2022 | Allowed | The invention relates to a method for identifying sentinel frames in a video. Sentinel frames are key frames within sentinel sequences which signal a transition or boundary between a first type of content and a second type of content. The invention also clusters the sentinel frames into groups having similar characteristics. This enables a dataset to be built up to aid future detection of sentinel frames. The Hearing Officer assessed the alleged contribution in the absence of a complete analysis of novelty and inventive step by the examiner and concluded it did relate to a technical contribution. The application was remitted back to the examiner to complete their examination. |
| O/649/22 | GB1711914.0 | Iain M Russell | Mr B Micklewright | 29 July 2022 | Refused | The invention related to providing an undo command to a user for a pull-to-refresh action in a computing device with a touch-sensitive display. The user could interact with either the original content, a visual indicator associated with the pull-to-refresh action, or another visual object displayed at the same time as the original content or at the same time as the refreshed content to enable the pull-to-refresh undo command. The original content was then retrieved from a cache memory of the computing device where it was previously cached and displayed. The hearing officer decided that the invention did not satisfy any of the AT&T signposts and was excluded from patentability as a program for a computer as such. He therefore refused the application. |
| O/646/22 | GB2108139.3 | Wei Xu | Mr B Buchanan | 29 July 2022 | Refused | The application is one of nine divisionals which use mobile devices, servers and a wireless network to enable transactions and communication in different environments. The claimed invention defines a system which enables a customer to refer a service to another customer, by the means of the first customer’s mobile device creating a barcode including customer identification, for a second customer to scan. The referral by the first customer of the service to the second customer can thereby be traced. The issue to be decided was whether the claims defined excluded subject matter. In arguing that the invention provided the requisite technical contribution, the Agent referred to a number of precedents and office decisions and argued that the claimed invention solved a problem using a new arrangement of hardware as well as providing advantages for processing efficiency and security. The Hearing Officer applied the four step Aerotel/Macrossan test and considered the AT&T signposts. The contribution was found not to provide the required technical effect and the claimed invention was found to relate solely to a program for a computer and a method for doing business as such, so the application did not meet the requirements of section 1(2)(c). The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/645/22 | GB2108138.5 | Wei Xu | Mr B Buchanan | 29 July 2022 | Refused | The application is one of nine divisionals which use mobile devices, servers and a wireless network to enable transactions and communication in different environments. The claimed invention defines a system which enables a customer to order from a menu in a restaurant, the order to be communicated to a waiter, and the customer to provide a barcode for the waiter to scan to effect a discount. The issue to be decided was whether the claims defined excluded subject matter. In arguing that the invention provided the requisite technical contribution, the Agent referred to a number of precedents and office decisions and argued that the claimed invention solved a problem using a new arrangement of hardware. The Hearing Officer applied the four step Aerotel/Macrossan test and considered the AT&T signposts. The contribution was found not to provide the required technical effect and the claimed invention was found to relate solely to a program for a computer and a method for doing business as such, so the application did not meet the requirements of section 1(2)(c). The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/623/22 | GB2106050.4 | Zebra Technologies Corporation | Mr P Mason | 22 July 2022 | Allowed | The application relates to a data capture system that is used to capture product related data in order to update a distributed ledger wherein the ledger is maintained and accessed at multiple points throughout a product supply chain. The system is characterised by the application of a software flag to captured product data which determines whether or not the data is recorded on the distributed ledger. The Hearing Officer applied the four-step approach set out in the Court of Appeal judgment in Aerotel. The Hearing Officer found the contribution made by the invention to be technical in nature and to fall outside the excluded matter of a program for a computer as such. The application was remitted to the examiner for further processing. |
| O/625/22 | GB1912576.4 | Walmart Apollo, LLC | Miss J Pullen | 22 July 2022 | Refused | The application relates generally to the field of supply chain management systems; and more specifically, to systems and methods for the routing of received shipments. The invention provides systems and methods for enabling efficient sorting and routing of the contents of received shipments that reduce the lifting and movement of product by unloaders and automatically update upstream and downstream systems based on the actual received goods. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan four step test, considered the AT&T/CVON signposts and found that the identified contribution of the independent claims did not make a technical contribution and that the claims are excluded from patentability as a computer program as such. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/593/22 | GB 2108140.1 , GB2108142.7 | Wei Xu | Miss J Pullen | 12 July 2022 | Refused | The two inventions each relate to barcode-based transaction systems. The ‘140.1 invention relates to a barcode-based transaction system where a transaction-specific barcode is displayed on a checkout and captured by a user’s mobile device. The mobile device communicates with a server to confirm that the barcode was generated according to a pre-set rule. Settlement can then be made from information encoded within the barcode. The ‘142.7 invention relates to a barcode-based arrangement of rewarding a commodity recommender when a user purchases a commodity. The arrangement uses mobile devices and various servers to implement a virtual currency rebate to the recommender. The hearing officer found that the objection regarding ‘140.1 containing added matter was not correct and that an objection to ‘142.7 being unclear with regard to the definition of two servers was incorrect. The hearing officer rejected the applicant’s submissions that both inventions comprised a new arrangement of hardware or provided any actual contribution to the security of the transaction systems given the prior disclosure in the applicant’s own previous patent application. The hearing officer found that the contributions of the inventions did not make a technical contribution and are excluded from patentability as a computer program and/or a business method, as such. The applications were refused under section 18(3). |
| O/583/22 | GB1721438.8 | Blackhawk Network Inc | Miss J Pullen | 08 July 2022 | Refused | The application relates to the management of data and forecasting based on that data using processes and methods which are said to allow forecasting with reduced data storage capacities and thus increased processing speeds. The hearing officer followed the Aerotel approach, considered the AT&T signposts and found that the identified contribution of the independent claims did not make a technical contribution and that the claims are excluded from patentability as a computer program as such. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/549/22 | GB2111710.6 | Cammegh Limited | Mr H Jones | 27 June 2022 | Refused | The invention relates to a system that provides an enhancement to the game of roulette. In addition to the conventional game in which players place wagers on the outcome of a single spin of the wheel, players also have the opportunity to place wagers upon a supplementary game and win a share of a progressive prize pool which accumulates over time from losing wagers. The hearing officer found that the combination of hardware disclosed in the application was distinguished from the prior art only by the specific rules of playing the game. The application was refused. |
| O/542/22 | GB1904713.3 | Emotional Perception AI Limited | Mr P Thorpe | 22 June 2022 | Refused | The application relates generally to the field of artificial neural networks (ANNs). The invention is concerned with training an ANN to perceive semantic similarity or dissimilarity between media files such as music files and using the trained ANN to recommend a file which is semantically similar to a given input. The applicant argued that ANNs in general did not conform to the classic computer program in that they did not rely on a series of details if then statements. They also argued that even if this was not the case, the method of training of the ANN and that it could be hardware or software based took it outside of the excluded categories. Applying Aerotel, The Hearing Officer however found it to be excluded as a computer program per se and refused the application. |
| O/480/22 | GB1507342.2 | Wordplay (UK) Ltd | Mr P Mason | 06 June 2022 | Refused | The application relates to a computer implemented method for identifying units of redundant code in a system having a main code-base, which code-base include a set of deployable units each of which are loadable. The method comprises creating a list of required deployable units and comparing this to a list of available deployable units to identify potentially redundant deployable units. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan four step test and considered the five AT&T/CVON signposts. He identified the contribution of the independent claims does not make a technical contribution and that the claims are excluded from patentability as a computer program as such. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/445/22 | GB1811353.0 | Beijing Didi Infinity Technology and Development Co Ltd | Mr P Mason | 24 May 2022 | Refused | The application relates to methods and systems for queuing transportation service requests, associated with an area, for an online ride hailing platform. In such a system, a passenger requests a transportation service (e.g. a ride) and the online ride hailing platform manages the dispatch of a service vehicle (e.g. a taxi, private car or the like) to fulfil the service request. A request queue can be created, by a processor, in response to the number of transportation requests being larger than an activation threshold. To prevent too many queues existing simultaneously, the activation threshold for queue creation may be increased when the number of activated queues reaches a certain level. A request queue can also be deactivated when the number of transportation service requests is less than a deactivation threshold. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan four step test, considered the five AT&T/CVON signposts and found that the identified contribution of the independent claims does not make a technical contribution and that the claims are excluded from patentability as a computer program as such and also excluded as a business method. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/431/22 | GB1916294.0 | NetEase (Hangzhou) Network Co., Ltd. | Mr P Thorpe | 17 May 2022 | Refused | The invention relates to online battle games played on mobile terminals, such as multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA). More specifically the invention seeks to overcome a problem with conventional game scene displays, in which a specific resource appears in the game scene in a different relative position for players belonging to different factions. The problem is overcome by presenting a game scene to players of a second faction that is a mirror image of the game scene presented to players of a first faction. The Hearing Officer however found the claimed invention to be excluded as the presentation of information and as a computer program. The application was therefore refused. |
| O/410/22 | GB1811470.2 | Wally Tzara | Mr H Jones | 11 May 2022 | Refused | The applicant was given an opportunity to amend his claims following an earlier decision which found his invention was excluded under section 1(2). The applicant duly filed amended claims but the hearing officer found that these still fell within the scope of excluded categories set out in section 1(2). The application was refused. |
| O/401/22 | GB1917522.3 | Andres Kruse & Elaine Kruse | Dr L Cullen | 10 May 2022 | Refused | This invention relates to a computer-implemented method for arranging, organising and mapping ideas or planning processes as part of a graphical workspace for idea management. The Hearing Officer agreed with the examiner’s reasoning which followed the four-step Aerotel test to determine whether there was a technical contribution and applied the AT&T signposts as modified in HTC. The contribution was found not to provide the required technical effect and hence the claimed invention related solely to a method for doing business, a program for a computer as such and to the presentation of information as such. As the application was found not to meet the requirements of sections 1(2)(c) and 1(2)(d) of the Act, it was refused under section 18(3) of the Act. |
| O/390/22 | GB2101742.1 | International Business Machines Corporation | Mr B Micklewright | 09 May 2022 | Refused | The invention related to performing active learning of large-scale entity resolution using a two-level cache hierarchy comprising distributed memory cache and distributed disk cache for storing link vector tables for intermediate results. The hearing officer found that the claimed invention lay solely in the excluded field of a program for a computer as such and therefore refused the application. |
| O/331/22 | GB 1804921.3 | Innoplexus AG | Mr P Mason | 20 April 2022 | Refused | The application relates to computer networks; and more specifically to a system that crawls a wide area computer network retrieving ‘contextual information’ and organising the ‘contextual information’ into one or more databases. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan four step test, considered the five AT&T/CVON signposts and found that the identified contribution of the independent claims does not make a technical contribution and that the claims are excluded from patentability as a computer program as such. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/325/22 | GB1804920.5 | Innoplexus AG | Miss J Pullen | 13 April 2022 | Refused | The application relates generally to computer networks; and more specifically, to systems that crawl. The invention is concerned with methods of (for) crawling websites, for example for crawling restricted websites, and specifically to, analysing source information associated with the websites to determine a crawling protocol thereof. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan four step test, considered the AT&T/CVON signposts and found that the identified contribution of the independent claims did not make a technical contribution and that the claims are excluded from patentability as a computer program as such. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/321/22 | GB1720945.3 | Beijing Sifang Automation Co. Ltd | Dr L Cullen | 12 April 2022 | Refused | This application relates to a “configuration software,” which is software that displays monitoring information for an industrial process or network, with the invention lying in the provision of a multilingual configuration software. Text strings to be displayed by the software are translated into a number of target languages and stored in a database, from which they are accessed as necessary. This enables the display language of the software to match that selected for the operating system of the computer on which the software is running. The Hearing Officer, applying the first step in the test from Aerotel, found that construing independent claim was not straightforward. He concluded that this claim could be construed as a computer-implemented system, as the examiner had, or as a method for doing business. This arose because it was possible to consider some of the essential steps in claim 1 as defining the multilingual database which results from the method rather than as steps in the method itself. Both situations were considered. Taking account of the AT&T signposts (as modified in HTC), the HO, found that the computer-implemented system did not provide a technical effect. In relation to the alternative construction, the HO found that invention sets out a plan by which to provide multilingual functionality in configuration software which was administrative and/or commercial and not technical in nature. As a result, the claimed invention was found to relate solely to a program for a computer as such or, in the alternative, to a method for doing business as such. Hence, the invention was excluded from patentability under section 1(2)(c) and the application was therefore refused under section 18(3). |
| O/312/22 | GB2005628.9 | Capital One Services, LLC | Mr B Buchanan | 07 April 2022 | Refused | The claimed invention relates to a method for omitting the requirement to re-check previously checked promotional codes on the contents of a shopping cart. Upon detecting a change in a shopping cart, it is determined whether the present contents has been previously tested using codes. If so, valid codes are retrieved from memory. If not, a shadow session is generated in parallel with the user session and a cloned cart created to mirror the user’s cart. Codes are then tested on the cloned cart in the shadow session which means that any conflicts do not occur in the user session and disrupt the user’s experience. The alleged advantages are that checkout time is saved, unnecessary processing steps are omitted and processing conflicts are avoided. The Agent argued that the invention provided a better computer and the technical effect was more than a business method. The Hearing Officer applied the four step Aerotel/Macrossan test and considered the AT&T signposts. The contribution was found not to provide the required technical effect and the claimed invention was found to relate solely to a program for a computer and a method for doing business as such, so the application did not meet the requirements of section 1(2)(c). The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/307/22 | GB1621532.9 | Google Inc. | Mr B Buchanan | 07 April 2022 | Refused | The claimed invention relates to a method for providing identified content, such as video content, to a user who may want to watch it later. The invention determines the likely relevance of the content, infers when the user might be able to watch the content, and upon activation of a device such as a TV associated with the user, sends a message to another user device, such as a smart phone, suitably notifying them of the content. The user can access the content on the TV by selecting the message on the phone. In arguing that the invention provided the requisite technical contribution, the Agent described the interconnected devices as a new technical system akin to the Aerotel “special exchange” which optimises the capabilities of each device. The Hearing Officer applied the four step Aerotel/Macrossan test and considered the AT&T signposts. The contribution was found not to provide the required technical effect and the claimed invention was found to relate solely to a program for a computer and a method for doing business as such, so the application did not meet the requirements of section 1(2)(c). The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/305/22 | GB1804913.0 | Innoplexus AG | Mr H Jones | 06 April 2022 | Refused | The invention relates to a computer-based technique for allocating a sales force to intermediaries (e.g. dealers, retailers, distributors or wholesalers). It seeks to overcome problems inherent in conventional manual techniques of developing marketing strategies. Such problems include errors due to a failure to take account of changing scenarios, and a lack of an experienced workforce to conduct market research. The hearing officer agreed with the examiner that the invention was clearly excluded from patentability under section 1(2). |
| O/303/22 | GB1811470.2 | Wally Tzara | Mr H Jones | 06 April 2022 | Refused | The invention relates to tracking the trend in the value of a quantity that varies over time, and more particularly about providing an alert when the onset of a reversal in a trend is identified. The invention is implemented on a computer, and the data analysed can be physical data, e.g. temperature of the ocean or atmospheric pressure, or can be non-physical, e.g. the price of oil. The hearing officer found that the invention as currently claimed, i.e. to include non-physical data such as the price of oil, was excluded under section 1(2). However, with reference to the Patents Court judgment in Protecting Kids the World Over, the hearing office found that by limiting the invention to physical data and thereby providing an alert in a technical field, the application would avoid the section 1(2) exclusions. The applicant was allowed one month to make satisfactory amendments to the claim, and if such amendments were made then the case would be remitted to the examiner to complete the examination with respect to the other requirements of the Act. |
| O/259/22 | GB1918881.2 | Hitachi, Ltd. | Mr B Buchanan | 25 March 2022 | Refused | The claimed invention relates to identifying a medical institution having available resources to execute a predicted diagnosis and treatment flow for a specific patient. The invention consists of a flow prediction model which includes a patient classification prediction model generated by machine learning. Patient state information such as present symptoms are used to determine a patient classification. The patient classification is used to determine the predicted flow, and in conjunction with medical institution resource availability information, suitable institutions are identified and presented at a terminal. The Agents referred to EPC Guidelines for Examination and argued that automated medical diagnosis served a technical purpose. The Hearing Officer applied the four step Aerotel/Macrossan test to determine whether there was a technical contribution and considered the AT&T signposts as the Examiner had applied them. The contribution was found not to provide a method of diagnosis or to include machine learning. It did not provide the required technical effect and the claimed invention was found to relate solely to a program for a computer and a method for doing business as such, so the application did not meet the requirements of section 1(2)(c). The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/227/22 | GB1804935.3 | Innoplexus AG | Mr S Brown | 15 March 2022 | Refused | The application concerns a process of providing structure to unstructured data received from a number of sources. The system takes the external information and through a process of identifying similar attributes, using a pattern matching algorithm and probability scoring, combines the records to create a combined data record. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and briefly considered the signposts laid out in HTC v Apple. He decided that the contribution made by the invention was excluded as a program for a computer as such. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/226/22 | GB1804895.9 | Innoplexus AG | Mr S Brown | 15 March 2022 | Refused | The application concerns a method of obtaining data, filtering the data and identifying probable links to the original input. It then scores each possible association and outputs the one with the highest score. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and briefly considered the signposts laid out in HTC v Apple. He decided that the contribution made by the invention was excluded as a program for a computer as such. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/224/22 | GB1804894.2 | Innoplexus AG | Mr S Brown | 15 March 2022 | Refused | The application concerns mapping biomedical entities using a database arrangement. A user enters a “biological entity” that belongs to a particular class. That class will be one of a target, disease, pathway or drug. The database is searched for related entities that have one of the other classes. A map of data relationships will then be output to the user. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and briefly considered the signposts laid out in HTC v Apple. He decided that the contribution made by the invention was excluded as a program for a computer as such. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/222/22 | GB1804892.6 | Innoplexus AG | Miss J Pullen | 15 March 2022 | Refused | The application relates generally to data processing, specifically to methods for parsing a user query. The invention is concerned with analysing the semantics (e.g. inferring the contextual meaning) of segments (e.g. words) of the user query. The hearing officer followed the Aerotel approach, considered the AT&T signposts and found that the identified contribution of the independent claims did not make a technical contribution and that the claims are excluded from patentability as a computer program as such. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/219/22 | GB1800030.7 | Fidelity National Information Services, Inc | Mr P Thorpe | 14 March 2022 | Refused | The invention relates to a computer implemented system for maintaining a consolidated audit trail (CAT) of trading events in securities markets. More specifically, a network-based system ("order linkage system") comprises processing systems (including a CAT processor) for receiving event data for orders (such as the type of order, time of order or customer) from CAT reporters (such as broker-dealers and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority) in order to determine relationships between the orders and order lifecycles for the orders. The system determines linkages between pairs of orders, the linkages representing a hierarchical relationship of parent orders and child orders. During the determination of linkages, the system detects errors in the event data or order lifecycle and outputs error reports to the CAT processors to allow for correction. The hearing Officer found the invention to be excluded as a method of doing business and as a program for a computer. The application was refused. |
| O/211/22 | GB1713806.6 | Google LLC | Miss J Pullen | 10 March 2022 | Refused | The invention relates to the organisation of images and the navigation through images of scenes. Images which may be captured by multiple users are combined into clusters related to the same scene based on the images matching a predetermined common pattern. The patterns may relate to the images showing a panorama pattern for a scene, a translation pattern across a scene or an orbit pattern around a scene. Neighbouring images of a given image in a cluster are also identified. When a user requests an image from a cluster, a first image is provided for display. Depending on user input, a neighbouring image or images of the first image is displayed or a first image or images of a second cluster is displayed. The hearing officer rejected the applicant’s submissions that the invention made a technical contribution based on the provision of a smooth navigation experience and the provision of a better computer because the different user inputs result in different images being displayed and a reduction of incorrect user inputs. The hearing officer found that the contribution of the independent claims did not make a technical contribution and are excluded from patentability as a computer program and/or the presentation of information, as such. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/183/22 | GB1419546.5 | truRating Limited | Mr S Brown | 03 March 2022 | Refused | The application concerns a system for collecting customer ratings from a PIN entry device (PED). During a standard commercial transaction, the PED receives a PIN and then displays a question about a service associated with the transaction. The invention adds new software components which adapt the PED to capture these extra inputs without altering its proprietary software. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and considered the signposts laid out in HTC v Apple. He decided that the contribution made by the invention was excluded as a program for a computer, and as a method of doing business, as such. The application was thus refused under section 18(3). |
| O/160/22 | GB1915390.7 | Equifax Inc. | Mr B Buchanan | 24 February 2022 | Refused | The claimed invention relates to a means for controlling access to an interactive computing system, using a neural network to determine a risk factor such as a credit score, based upon consumer credentials. The interactive computer system may provide financial services such as loans, credit cards and banking. The agent argued that the training of the neural network, which results in a monotonic relationship between inputs and outputs and the use of a resultant risk factor in determining access control provide a technical contribution. They also argued that the claim was not limited to a credit score or accessing financial services. The Hearing Officer applied the four step Aerotel/Macrossan test to determine whether there was a technical contribution and considered the AT&T signposts. The contribution was not found to provide the required technical effect and the claimed invention was found to relate solely to a program for a computer and a method for doing business as such, so the application did not meet the requirements of section 1(2)(c). The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/135/22 | GB1818388.9 | Motorola Solutions, Inc. | Mr B Micklewright | 16 February 2022 | Refused | The invention related to offloading assets from portable electronic devices such as body-worn cameras worn by law enforcement personnel. The invention determined whether to grant or deny offload requests based on various factors and also determined a storage priority and a storage time. The hearing officer found that the invention related to a program for a computer as such and therefore refused the application. |
| O/130/22 | GB2011051.6 | River Lane Research Ltd. | Mr B Micklewright | 15 February 2022 | Refused | The invention related to a method of determining at least one unknown energy level of a physical system using a quantum computer. In particular the invention used an overlap estimation routine which was linear in the Hamiltonian. The hearing officer applied the Aerotel steps and considered the AT&T signposts to be relevant to quantum computers as they are to classical computers. Following a careful analysis of the signposts and the arguments presented by the applicant the hearing officer found that the invention related to a program for a computer as such but not to a mathematical method as such. He also considered whether an amendment to a specific application would avoid the exclusions but decided that it would not. That application was therefore refused. |
| O/125/22 | GB1508111.0 | Blackhawk Network Inc | Mr P Mason | 14 February 2022 | Refused | The invention relates to a display of products, for example stored-value cards (SVCs), in a retail environment wherein an optimized planogram template is generated. The planogram template is optimised such that it assigns display products with regard to several distinct parameters relating to customer behaviour, as well as predetermined factors such as brand, value, category and/or performance history, in order to influence sales. In applying the Aerotel steps, the hearing officer found the contribution related to a computer implemented method of optimizing a planograph template based on predetermined inputs as well as real time data collected by sensors. In applying the AT&T signposts the hearing officer found that the computer was operating in an expected way, and the problem the invention is attempting to solve has no technical merit. As such, he found it to be excluded as a method of doing business and/or a programme for a computer as such. The application was refused. |
| O/089/22 | GB1615991.5 | Amer Sports Digital Services OY | Mr P Thorpe | 03 February 2022 | Refused | The invention relates to determining an intensity level of an activity for example running or swimming in which a user is engaged. The user has a wearable device such as a smart watch which includes or is coupled to a kinematic sensor such as an acceleration sensor or angular velocity sensor. The wearable device can also be connected to a heart sensor or the like. The invention involves a calibration step to provide a user-specific calibration metric, such that subsequently an intensity level of an activity may be determined in the absence of the heart rate sensor, using instead the kinematic sensor and the calibration metric. Applying Windsurfing, the hearing officer found the invention to lack an inventive step on the basis of any of a number of documents. He also found the invention to be excluded as a program for a computer. The application was therefore refused. |
| O/033/22 | GB1802583.3 | Canon Kabushiki Kaisha | Miss J Pullen | 17 January 2022 | Refused | The invention relates to updating digital certificates which have validity periods after which they are no longer useable for authentication/verification. Problems arise if a certificate is not updated when, or before, the validity period expires and updating is a time-consuming burden for users/administrators when there are many information processing apparatus that need to update electronic certificates. The invention defines an apparatus and method which transmits a certificate issuance request to an external apparatus at a predetermined timing, receives an updated certificate in response and stores the updated certificate. The predetermined timing, which is independent from the certificate expiry date, is based on a date and a time and an update cycle set by a user via a screen. The Hearing Officer construed the claims and found them to be prima facie clear. They went on to consider the contribution made by the invention in the light of the five signposts set out in AT&T. They concluded there was no technical effect and the invention is excluded by section 1(2) as a computer program as such and a business method. The application was refused. |
| O/018/22 | GB1805236.5 | Unanimous A.I. Inc | Mr H Jones | 11 January 2022 | Allowed | The invention relates to a computer-based collaboration system which aims to harness the collective intelligence of a group of individuals to provide an answer to a question. Each individual uses a computing device to provide an input in response to the question. The computing devices are networked to a server which receives and processes the inputs from the individual computing devices and provides feedback to the computing devices. The devices also display a target board i.e. a range of possible inputs that the user may wish to select in order to provide their answer to the question. In the described embodiment this takes the form of the letters of the alphabet, spatially arranged on the display, by which the user can spell out their answer. Each user makes an input to their respective computing device, such as swiping a touchscreen, or tilting the device. The input is a vector input, i.e. it has both a magnitude and a direction. The display also shows a current pointer location. Each computing device repeatedly and in real-time sends a vector representation of the user input to a server. The server combines the received inputs from the plurality of users and from this information it calculates an updated pointer location, which it sends to all the computing devices. All the computing devices then move their pointer to the same updated position relative to the target board, which provides each user with feedback as to what the other users have been inputting. The users can react to the movement of the pointer by making further inputs in order to try to steer its trajectory, if they so wish, and the process continues repeatedly in a closed loop until the collective will of the group for the pointer’s location becomes clear and thus the answer to the question may be determined. The claim is directed towards the system which enables this process to occur. In accordance with the approach for assessing patentability of inventions set out by the Court of Appeal in Aerotel, the Hearing Officer agreed that the contribution could be defined in terms of an input device and that it could therefore be regarded as technical. The application was remitted to the examiner for further processing. |
| O/014/22 | GB1714456.9 | Google LLC | Mr H Jones | 07 January 2022 | Refused | The application relates to enhancing the functionality of computer-based dialogue systems, often included as user-interfaces for accessing, processing, managing and delivering information, e.g. in smart speakers. Existing dialogue systems may be very different in their capabilities - one dialogue system may be able to generate an e-mail but may not be configured to handle a request to make a hotel room booking, whereas another might be able to handle such booking requests but be unable to process a request to send an e-mail. Users may therefore wish to extend the functionality of the dialogue system with which they work. The invention allows for enhancement of the functionality of a dialogue system by targeting dialogue system extension elements to a user based on monitoring their natural language voice and text interaction to thereby provide a customised dialogue system engine which is better able to fulfil a user’s request to perform a desired task. The Hearing Officer agreed with applicant that inventions relating to speech recognition systems may be regarded as technical but found that the present invention was not concerned with improved disambiguation of a user’s voice or text requests. Instead, the invention is concerned with recognising the limits of its existing functionality based on user requests and prompting the user to extend that functionality if necessary. The Hearing Officer considered the contribution made by the invention in the light of the five signposts set out in AT&T and concluded that the improvement lay in a computer program as such, and therefore excluded by section 1(2). The application was refused. |
| O/001/22 | GB1407692.1 | Chadex Ltd | Mr P Thorpe | 04 January 2022 | Refused | The invention relates to a method and a script for displaying a page in an internet browser. In particular, the application relates to a method of uploading advertisements to be displayed on a page in an internet browser only when those advertisements would be visible to the user. Further it relates to a method of determining how long the advert is visible to the user to enable more accurate billing. The hearing officer found he invention to be excluded as a computer program and as a method of doing business. The application was therefore refused. |
| O/859/21 | GB1514006.4 | Gelliner Limited | Mrs C L Davies | 21 December 2021 | Refused | The invention relates to a method by which a person can obtain physical cash when an automated teller machine (ATM) is not readily available. The method is a means by which a withdrawer, i.e. in individual wishing to withdraw money as physical cash from their account, can obtain the cash without having to access an ATM. When a withdrawer wishes to withdraw cash, they use a computing device to send a cash request to an application server. The server then sends requests for cash to depositor devices within a set range of the withdrawer device. When the server receives a quote of a cash withdrawal fee for the cash withdrawal from a depositor device it forwards it to the withdrawer device. When the withdrawer device receives the quote, it sends an acceptance of the quote to the application server. The server then sends instruction so that the withdrawer and depositor can meet. When the withdrawer has received the cash from the depositor, messages are sent by the both the withdrawer and the depositor to the application server to confirmation that the cash transfer has been completed. Then electronic funds to the amount of the cash transfer and the fee are debited from the withdrawer’s account and credited to the depositor’s electronic account. On applying the Aerotel/Macrossan 4 step test, the Hearing Officer found that the claimed invention was excluded as a computer program as such and a business method as such. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/913/21 | GB1616110.1 | The Nielson Company (US), LLC | Mr B Micklewright | 16 December 2021 | Refused | The invention related to counting media impressions and associating demographic information with those media impressions, the demographic information obtained from proprietary databases such as social networks. A non-coverage error, which arises when such demographic information is not available, is corrected in a calculation involving probabilities that the media is accessed via particular device types amongst other things. The hearing officer found that the invention was excluded as a program for a computer as such and a method of doing business as such. He therefore refused the application. |
| O/884/21 | GB1715738.9 | International Consolidated Airlines Group | Mr H Jones | 08 December 2021 | Refused | The application relates to a data query processing system, particularly for use with data relating to “perishable units”. Perishable units are defined in the application as being any form of entity which has an attribute defined by some constraint such as time and/or quantity, e.g. a purchasable ticket for a commercial travel service, hotel rooms, restaurant reservations, etc. Conventionally a data query processing system involves a backend server receiving and processing queries from remote computing devices across a data network. The backend server maintains a single source of up-to-date data which allows the queries to be processed. The problem with such conventional data query handing systems is that the backend server is involved in every data request, and the server is therefore prone to processing bottlenecks. The invention adopts a different approach, based on machine learning. Rather than the backend server processing all the queries, each remote computing device is enabled to process queries itself. The hearing officer considered the contribution made by the invention in the light of the five signposts set out in AT&T and concluded that the improvement lay in a computer program as such, and therefore excluded by section 1(2). The application was refused. |
| O/877/21 | GB1820379.4 | Hitachi, Ltd. | Mr B Buchanan | 03 December 2021 | Refused | The claimed invention relates to managing a water supply system e.g. for the supply of water to homes and businesses. Specifically, the invention seeks to determine a prioritised order for investing in infrastructure such as pipes and tanks, by supply area. This determination is made based on stored details of consumption and loss in the water supply, processing to generate a graphic display of consumption and comparison of the effects of implementing a particular maintenance or upgrade solution for each supply area. The particular solution is specified by a user. The invention then determines a priority order for implementation of the particular solution based on the efficiency of the solution in each area. The objective is to minimise water wastage within controlled costs. The Hearing Officer followed the four step Aerotel/Macrossan test to determine whether there was a technical contribution and considered the AT&T signposts. The contribution was not found to provide the required technical effect and the claimed invention was found to relate solely to a program for a computer and a method for doing business as such, so the application did not meet the requirements of section 1(2)(c). The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/867/21 | GB1501816.1 | Borealis Technical Limited | Mr P Mason | 29 November 2021 | Refused | The application relates to a method of transferring passengers efficiently between an airport terminal and an aircraft interior through forward and aft passenger loading connections to forward and aft aircraft doors. The application does not specify any technical features of the aircraft doors, the directly driven landing gear wheel which is controlled by the pilot, the aircraft interior, the aircraft seating, the separation of the first and second interior sections of the aircraft, the terminal, the terminal parking location or the loading bridges. It is clear that the method of the invention is put into effect by standard equipment which was well known in the art on the priority date of the application. The contribution was found to be an organisational or logistical activity, with no technical content and was excluded from patentability as a business method under Section 1(2)(c). The hearing officer refused the application under s18(3). |
| O/846/21 | GB1910434.8 | Motorola Solutions, Inc | Mr H Jones | 17 November 2021 | Refused | The application relates to managing emergency messaging where, for example, a public safety organisation may transmit a reverse emergency message to one or more network-connectable devices located within a geographic area impacted by the emergency. In the invention, a processor is configured to determine that a data feed from a network-connectable device is related to an incident, determine a confidence value for the incident, and according to the confidence value either: transmit a reverse emergency message automatically, or transmit it after confirmation. The Hearing Officer applied the four-step test set out in the Court of Appeal judgment in Aerotel and considered the AT&T signposts for the set of claims presently on file (main request) as well as for four sets of amended claims (first-fourth auxiliary requests). In each case, he decided that the contribution made by the invention is not technical in nature. He found that the contribution falls solely within excluded subject matter as no more than a program for a computer and a method for doing business as such. The application was refused. |
| O/833/21 | GB1901942.1 | F-Secure Corporation | Mr B Micklewright | 12 November 2021 | Refused | The invention related to identifying potentially unsafe devices or devices otherwise subject to a product recall when such devices are registered to a network via a router by identifying the device type and maintaining a table of unsafe devices at the router, the table updated based on an update table in a backend system. The hearing officer found that the invention related to a program for a computer as such and a method of doing business as such. He therefore refused the application. |
| O/814/21 | GB1804882.7 | Innoplexus AG | Mr S Brown | 03 November 2021 | Refused | The application concerns a method of amalgamating clinical trial data from a plurality of different drug trials. Where trials are considered similar their results are amalgamated into a single entry. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and considered the signposts laid out in HTC v Apple. The Hearing Officer decided that the contribution made by the invention was excluded as a program for a computer, and as a method of doing business, as such. The application was thus refused under section 18(3). |
| O/813/21 | GB1607223.3 | Personalis Inc | Mr S Brown | 03 November 2021 | Refused | The application concerns a computer implemented method of associating data relating to phenotypes of a subject with data concerning one or more genes, ranking the genes according to the degree of association with the phenotype, looking for these genes in a genetic sequence of the subject and generating an output. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and decided that the contribution was, at heart, no more than the processing of data. He thus concluded that the invention was excluded as a program for a computer, as such. The application was thus refused under section 18(3). |
| O/756/21 | GB1804452.9 | Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. | Mr P Mason | 12 October 2021 | Refused | The invention relates to a method for providing audio-video data to provide a virtual reality (VR) display output when processed by a VR headset, including providing additional content packaged with the audio-video data; the additional content configured to provide an alternative display output which alternative output comprises an augmented reality (AR) output and at least one of 3D or 2D audio-video output. The claimed invention further requires that the AR output is configured “to simulate the VR output” when it is used in conjunction with the at least one of a 2D or 3D audio-video output. The examiner had objected to added matter, inventive step and excluded subject matter. The hearing Officer decided that the amended claims were fully supported by the description and as such went on to consider the excluded subject matter. The hearing Officer applied the four step test from Aerotel and considered the AT&T Signposts. When considering the contribution, the efficient display of scripted events of a narrative was not considered to be a technical contribution, as such he found that the application lacked the required technical contribution and refused the application as a computer program as such. The application was refused. |
| O/755/21 | GB2018653.2 | Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. | Mr P Mason | 12 October 2021 | Refused | The invention relates to a method for providing audio-video data to provide a virtual reality (VR) display output when processed by a VR headset, including providing additional content packaged with the audio-video data. The claimed invention required that the AR output is configured “to simulate the VR output” when it is used in conjunction with the at least one of a 2D or 3D audio-video output. The examiner had objected to added matter, inventive step and excluded subject matter. The hearing Officer decided that the amended claims were fully supported by the description and as such went on to consider the excluded subject matter. It was clear that the contribution was put into effect by a computer programmed to configure and package the audio-video data. The computer consists of conventional data processing hardware. The specific method of configuring or packaging the data is not disclosed and so was similarly assumed to be conventional. The hearing Officer applied the four step test from Aerotel and considered the AT&T Signposts. The contribution was considered to reside in the enjoyment of narrative content displayed, as such it was found that the application lacked the required technical contribution. The application was refused as a computer program as such. There was no further consideration of obviousness. |
| O/749/21 | GB1805684.6 | Imagination Technologies Limited | Mr B Micklewright | 11 October 2021 | Allowed | The invention related to evaluating a mathematical function using a polynomial block to evaluate the required mathematical function to a first level of accuracy, the result of this evaluation then being used to initialise a CORDIC algorithm in an associated CORDIC block in order to refine the approximation of the mathematical function to the required level of accuracy. The claimed invention was restricted to implementing these two steps in fixed logic circuitry. The hearing officer construed the claim as relating in substance to a hardware arrangement and determined that the identified contribution made a technical contribution and did not therefore relate to either a program for a computer as such or a mathematical method as such. He therefore referred the application back to the examiner for further processing. |
| O/710/21 | GB2006933.2 | Belvadi Nagarajaswamy Ramesh | Miss J Pullen | 28 September 2021 | Refused | The application relates to blockchain containing custom features such as controlling devices connected to the blockchain, which is usually achieved by using custom Opcodes and non-standard scripts. According to the application such custom Opcodes are prone to the introduction of bugs which means that there is a lack of support for these known techniques amongst users, such as bitcoin miners. The application addresses this by providing a new method of creating control data which can be used to cause a device connected to a blockchain to execute an activity. On applying the Aerotel/Macrossan test and considering the AT&T signposts the Hearing Officer found that the claimed invention was excluded as a computer program as such. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/701/21 | GB1511914.2 | Lookout, Inc. | Mr B Buchanan | 24 September 2021 | Allowed | The claimed invention relates to a method and system for authorising user access to a network resource. This is achieved by implementing multi-factor authentication including sending an authorisation request to a second user to authorise the first user’s access request. The authorisation request is sent to a separate device, associated with the second user. The examiner considered the apparatus and authentication means to be conventional and objected to the invention consisting of a program for a computer and/or a method for doing business. The applicant argued, among other things, that the use of multiple physical devices to enable authorisation gave rise to a technical contribution. The Hearing Officer followed the four step Aerotel/Macrossan test to determine whether there was a technical contribution and considered the AT&T (HTC/Apple) signposts. The identified contribution to the field of access-control was found to include elements ensuring the independence of the second user authorisation, by using a second authorising device associated with the second user and separate authentication of the second user. This was deemed to provide the required technical effect and the application was remitted to the examiner for final processing. |
| O/692/21 | GB1313192.5 | Luke Leonard Martin Porter | Mrs C L Davies | 22 September 2021 | Refused | The invention relates to bi-temporal relational databases i.e. databases including a valid time and transaction time. In such databases, the data content can change over time, errors can occur in data entry, and queries may relate to “old” database content. This can give rise to temporal overlaps and gaps in the data. Therefore, the problem the invention addresses is how to provide an improved bi-temporal relational database that ensures there are no temporal gaps or overlaps in data. The invention supports data integrity and temporal queries in a transaction database under evolving data entries/content by storing the temporal data separately in three underlying tables and automatically updating time data/generating end-dates to avoid temporal overlaps. As a result, the possibility of gaps/overlaps in valid time is eliminated, and the user does not have to manually enter/update end times of transactions because they are automatically updated from the start times of subsequent events entered by the user. On applying the Aerotel/Macrossan test, the Hearing Officer found that the claimed invention was excluded as a computer program as such. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/678/21 | GB1802909.0 | CTIA - The Wireless Association | Mr B Micklewright | 17 September 2021 | Refused | The invention related to a system for use with mobile telephone messaging services to help a user authenticate that a message was sent by a particular company. Upon receiving a request from a mobile receiver for a certificate from a particular sourcing entity, a logo corresponding to that sourcing entity was incorporated into the certificate along with decryption information. Once an encrypted entity digital signature had been decrypted by the mobile receiver to authenticate that the message was sent by a particular sourcing entity, the decrypted logo was presented to the user in conjunction with the message to provide visual authentication. The hearing officer considered the claims on file to comprise added subject matter and the contribution to relate to a computer program for a computer or presentation of information as such and therefore refused the application. |
| O/649/21 | GB1617238.9 | Apptio, Inc. | Mr H Jones | 07 September 2021 | Refused | The application relates to a method of modelling cost items in large businesses where the number of items required for accurate financial modelling makes it difficult to develop models very easily. The application was refused as relating to a program for a computer. |
| O/622/21 | GB1613580.8 | Colin Laird Higbie | Mr P Mason | 23 August 2021 | Refused | The invention relates to a computer-based, media content classification and recovery system, wherein a large number of e-book files are stored on a central database. Each e-book file comprises a plurality of identifiers relating to author and literary content of the respective e-book file. A user can apply a filter according to the identifiers and receives a ranked list of e-book files that fulfil their specific filter. In applying the Aerotel steps, the hearing officer found the contribution was restricted to how the computer programme handles input data and preassigned data to produce a ranked result. The hearing officer found the problem, that the invention attempts to solve, to be administrative rather than technical. As such, he found the invention be excluded as a computer program such. The application was refused under s18(3). |
| O/609/21 | GB1718717.0 | Jaguar Land Rover | Mrs C L Davies | 18 August 2021 | Refused | The invention relates to a computer implemented method for determining a minimum state of charge for an energy storage means of a vehicle comprising the steps of determining (31) a routine use of charge of the energy storage means; determining (32) a user requirement for future driving of the vehicle; predicting (33) a reduction in the state of charge (SoC) of the energy storage means associated with the user requirement in dependence on the determined routine; determining (35) a minimum state of charge for the energy storage means for enabling the user requirement to be satisfied in dependence on the predicted reduction; and providing (37) an output to the user indicative of a time requirement for increasing the state of charge of the energy storage means to a value at or above the minimum state of charge. The application identifies advantages which the invention aims to address, such as ‘range anxiety’ for a user and also in providing a user with greater confidence in mid-journey recharging halts. The application particularly notes that a user recharging mid-journey will be better informed regarding how long they will have to wait thus avoid spending more time than is necessary to complete their journey. Following the Windsurfing/Pozzoli approach, the Hearing Officer found that the invention as set out in the claims was inventive over the cited prior art. For excluded matter, the Hearing Officer on applying the Aerotel/Macrossan test, found that the claimed invention was excluded as a computer program as such. However, the Hearing Officer considered that there might be scope for the applicant to amend to overcome the excluded matter objection. The application was remitted to the examiner for further processing. |
| O/604/21 | GB1420502.5 | Michael Adewunmi Idowu | Mr H Jones | 17 August 2021 | Refused | The application relates to a so-called Collatz based expert system, which the hearing officer found to be a computer implementation of a mathematical method developed by the inventor. The application was refused on the basis that the invention was excluded under section 1(2). |
| O/603/21 | GB1722307.4 | Innoplexus AG | Mr B Buchanan | 17 August 2021 | Refused | The claimed invention relates to a method, system, and program for identifying an increasingly popular (nascent) topic related to a field of interest and addresses the problem of analysing aggregated data across multiple channels. The topic may be provided by a user as a search query, and the claimed invention can analyse data from multiple channels such as forums and blogs on the internet as well as other sources. By using the invention, a user can reliably and accurately discover sustained increasing references to e.g. a specific medical treatment and use the information to assist investment, research and innovation. The Hearing Officer followed the four step Aerotel/Macrossan test to determine whether there was a technical contribution and considered the AT&T (HTC/Apple) signposts. The identified contribution was not found to provide the required technical effect and the claimed invention was found to relate solely to a program for a computer as such, so the application did not meet the requirements of section 1(2)(c). The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/599/21 | GB1702682.4 | Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc. | Mr B Micklewright | 12 August 2021 | Refused | The invention related to launching a game application into a playable state by providing a game application launch object which presents a plurality of modes of operation to the user. Following a selection of one of these modes by the user, the game is launched into the relevant playable game state without needing to navigate any initial menus in the game application itself. Common game components are loaded before the user makes their selection. The hearing officer considered the invention to relate to a program for a computer as such and therefore refused the application. |
| O/592/21 | GB1521342.4 | Kofax International Switzerland Sàrl | Mr H Jones | 10 August 2021 | Refused | The application relates to a problem that occurs when transferring electronic medical images from one picture archive system (PACS) to another, for instance from a PACS associated with a first healthcare institution and another PACS associated with a second healthcare institution. While there exists a protocol (DICOM) for communicating between PACS, there is a lack of standardisation in the values that populate metadata fields associated with the DICOM medical images. The proposed solution to this problem is to modify the metadata during the transfer process so that it matches the format of the metadata of the recipient PACS. In addition, the invention involves logging when an error occurs in the metadata modification process. The hearing officer found that the invention set out in the application related very clearly to a computer program as such and did not need to consider the question of whether it was also a business method. The application was refused. |
| O/547/21 | GB1419316.3 | Walmart Apollo, LLC | Mr B Micklewright | 21 July 2021 | Refused | The invention related to making payments for items purchased by online orders as in-store point-of-sale (“POS”) payments. It reduced the potential for abuse or fraud by restricting which items were eligible for in-store POS payments based on classification of the item, quantity, and cost of the item. It also evaluated whether the refund activity of a customer indicated abusive activity and, based on this, limited the payment of refunds to stores within a threshold proximity from the store from which the acknowledgment of payment at the POS was received. The hearing officer found that the contribution lay solely in the excluded fields of a method of doing business as such and a program for a computer a such and therefore refused the application. |
| O/546/21 | GB1721517.9 | Interbird Co Ltd | Mr P Mason | 21 July 2021 | Refused | The application concerns retrieving data relating to semiconductor parts from a created database of semiconductor part information. The database of semiconductor part information is created by automatically extracting information from inputted manufacturer’s specifications for semiconductor parts. The created database can be searched by a user entering a query term for a semiconductor part. If the entered query term has no direct matches in the database the invention uses a so called “last alphabet deletion algorithm” upon the entered query term to create alternative query terms. The alternative query terms may retrieve semiconductor parts which start, end, or contain the entered query term, or part of it. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and considered the signposts laid out in HTC v Apple. The Hearing Officer was not convinced by the arguments that the computer was working in a new way or that the computer was working more efficiently or effectively as a computer and decided that the contribution made by the invention was excluded as a program for a computer as such. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/530/21 | GB1305636.1 | Thunderhead Limited | Mrs C L Davies | 13 July 2021 | Refused | The invention relates to testing content for delivery to content consumers. In particular, it relates to multi variant testing. Multi variant testing is a process by which any number of components of content, such as components of a webpage, may be tested. Multi variant testing effectively allows numerous A/B tests to be performed for content comprising an assembly of content parts, at the same time. Multi variant testing can allow for a large number of possible combinations of content in numerous configurations. In view of the large number of possible variations, multi variant testing is constrained by the available time and population of content receivers (such as users). An example of content for which split or multi variant testing may be performed is the series of steps involved in a purchase on an electronic commerce web site. Any improvements in drop-off rates and failures to convert visitors to sales can represent additional sales for an electronic commerce provider. The invention relates to a method of receiving content consumer attributes from all content consumers; generating a content assembly based on all content consumer attributes and historical content configuration information for each content consumer; delivering the content assembly to at least one content consumer; recording metrics associated with interaction between the content consumer and the content assembly; and updating the historical content configuration information based on the metrics for that one content consumer, wherein the historical content configuration information includes efficacy information about historical content assemblies for each content consumer attribute in the set of possible content consumer attributes for the at least one consumer and the efficacy information relating to combinations of any modifiable consumer attributes with other consumer attributes for a desired level of efficacy of presentation of the content assembly to the at least one content consumer and defined by the historical content configuration information. On applying the Aerotel/Macrossan test, the Hearing Officer found that the claimed invention was excluded as a computer program as such and a method of doing busines as such. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/524/21 | GB1601418.5 | Landmark Graphics Corporation | Mr S Brown | 09 July 2021 | Refused | The application concerns a method of visually representing hydrocarbon well activities. This visual representation is in the form of a bar chart with each bar representing an occurrence of a well-activity and the position and length of each bar indicating timing information for that activity. Event-bars can be updated using real-time data from sensors. In one embodiment, a bar chart may be generated for a planned well with ‘expected’ event bars based on aggregated data from past wells. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and considered the signposts laid out in HTC v Apple. The Hearing Officer was not convinced by the argument that the contribution was a better method of modelling well behaviour and decided that the contribution made by the invention was excluded as a program for a computer, and as the presentation of information, as such. The application was thus refused under section 18(3). |
| O/519/21 | GB1808595.1 | Arm Limited and Apical Ltd | Mr B Micklewright | 08 July 2021 | Allowed | The invention relates to classifying objects in sequential sets of image frames representing a dynamic scene. The crux of the invention relates to selecting subsets of object definitions from categorization data in a first and second object classification cycle in dependence on control data from an external data source. This object definition data may be in a hierarchical form with coarse-level and fine-level definitions, e.g. the class “Animal” could have a subclass “2 legged” which could have a further subclass “Human”. The hearing officer decided that the invention related to a program for a computer as such but found that claims 3 and 4, which carried out these steps in response to data representing availability of a system resource of the image processing system, were allowable. He therefore provided an opportunity for the applicants to limit their claims to the features of claims 3 and 4. |
| O/519/21 | GB1808595.1 | Arm Limited and Apical Ltd | Mr B Micklewright | 08 July 2021 | Refused | The invention relates to classifying objects in sequential sets of image frames representing a dynamic scene. The crux of the invention relates to selecting subsets of object definitions from categorization data in a first and second object classification cycle in dependence on control data from an external data source. This object definition data may be in a hierarchical form with coarse-level and fine-level definitions, e.g. the class “Animal” could have a subclass “2 legged” which could have a further subclass “Human”. The hearing officer decided that the invention related to a program for a computer as such but found that claims 3 and 4, which carried out these steps in response to data representing availability of a system resource of the image processing system, were allowable. He therefore provided an opportunity for the applicants to limit their claims to the features of claims 3 and 4. |
| O/512/21 | GB1521244.2 | Hitachi Ltd | Mr P Mason | 06 July 2021 | Refused | The invention relates to an apparatus that recommends a meal to a user wherein the recommendation is based on user health information as well as meal information including nutritional value of a meal and unit price. The meal is presented to the user wherein the meal is intended to improve, or at least not exacerbate, the user’s health. The apparatus is intended to be operated on a computer terminal. In applying the Aerotel steps, the hearing officer found the contribution related to a computer implemented method of analysing historic data, comparing this historic data to distinct databases relating to nutritional information and user health information in order to present the user a suggested menu. As such, he found it to be excluded as a method of doing business and/or a programme for a computer as such. The application was refused. |
| O/507/21 | GB1804870.2 | Innoplexus AG | Miss J Pullen | 05 July 2021 | Refused | The application relates identifying potential targets for pharmaceutical compounds by extracting them from a database of data sources and information related to pharmaceutical compounds and assessing the relative potential of targets by use of a scoring system. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan four step test, considered the AT&T/CVON signposts and found that the contribution fell within the excluded categories as a computer program as such. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/503/21 | GB1217066.8 | Andres Kruse & Elaine Kruse | Mr B Buchanan | 01 July 2021 | Refused | The claimed invention relates to the selective reduction of information presented to a reader on the screen of a device, by displaying only the first sentence of each paragraph, until a user action indicates a full paragraph is to be displayed. As well as advantages for the user in assisting their intuitive interpretation of content, the invention allegedly also reduces the processing power and extends the battery life of the device. The Hearing Officer followed the four step Aerotel/Macrossan test to determine whether there was a technical contribution and considered the AT&T signposts. The identified contribution was not found to provide the required technical effect and the claimed invention was found to relate solely to a program for a computer and the presentation of information as such, so the application did not meet the requirements of section 1(2). The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/466/21 | GB1810802.7 | INNOPLEXUS AG | Miss J Pullen | 21 June 2021 | Refused | The invention relates to a system and method for regularizing data between a data source and a data destination database comprising a data processing arrangement to fetch data, such as documents, from the data source and transform fields, such as title, date etc., within that data that deviate from a pre-defined data format for specific data categories, such as patents, sales reports etc., into the pre-defined data format and transmit the resulting regularized data to a data destination database. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan four step test, considered the AT&T/CVON signposts and found that the contribution fell within the excluded categories as a computer program as such. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/433/21 | GB1804936.1 | Innoplexus AG | Mr B Micklewright | 10 June 2021 | Refused | The invention related to identifying key entities (an entity defined to be a person, an organisation, object, domain and so forth) which have particular influence or expertise using attributes associated with the key entities and weighting the attributes depending on an asset class to which they belong, the weightings being tuned by the user. The hearing officer found that the invention related to a program for a computer a such and therefore refused the application. |
| O/420/21 | GB1622135.0 , GB2100545.9 | Imagination Technologies Limited | Mr S Brown | 04 June 2021 | Allowed | Both applications relate to systems that receive streams of data values and determine the median values of this data. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and decided that the contributions were made by fixed function circuitry. As such, they were not programmes for a computer. He also considered Gales Application and decided that the contributions were also not mathematical methods, as such. Both applications were remitted to the examiner for further processing. |
| O/398/21 | GB1722305.8 | INNOPLEXUS AG | Mr H Jones | 27 May 2021 | Refused | The invention is concerned with identifying key terms in digital documents. The presence of key terms in a document helps a user performing a search to assess the relevance of that document. A key term, as used in this application, is a significant word or phrase that remains equivalently comparable in multiple languages. By way of example, the term “cancer” in English translates as “cancer” in French and “cancr” in Welsh. The applicant’s method involves directly translating the original text of the document into two other languages, and also translating one of the translated texts into the other of the translated languages. The translations are compared to identify any text which is similar. An ontology is developed and used as a base to determine if the similar text is a key term of interest. The hearing officer could not identify a technical contribution made by the invention and therefore refused the application. |
| O/397/21 | GB1722304.1 | INNOPLEXUS AG | Mr P Thorpe | 27 May 2021 | Refused | The invention relates to gaining knowledge about how connections between users of professional web-based networking platforms affect the professional benefit afforded a user of the networking platforms. More specifically, it involves determining how closely pairs of users within a specific area of expertise are connected and the level of influence of one of the users of a pair based on their attributes and/or their relations with other. The Hearing Officer applying Aerotel found that the invention was excluded as a program for a computer and as a method of doing business |
| O/386/21 | GB1804928.8 | Innoplexus AG | Mr H Jones | 24 May 2021 | Refused | The invention is concerned with pre-loading data relating to a network node to improve user experience. A network graph is a convenient way of representing large amounts of data. It provides a visual depiction of the data in the form of interconnected nodes. Each node represents records associated with an entity, and the interconnections between nodes depict the relationships between the entities. Conventionally a user selects a network node that they are interested in and then the records for that node are extracted. This may take some time, and the user experiences a lag. To mitigate this and improve the user experience, the invention analyses the user’s activity and predicts which node the user is interested in before they actually select it. This enables the relevant records to be extracted in advance. The hearing officer found that this had the effect of overcoming a technical problem as opposed to solving it and thus found that no technical contribution was made. The application was refused. |
| O/379/21 | GB1722308.2 | Innoplexus AG | Mr H Jones | 21 May 2021 | Refused | The invention relates to providing a user of computer-based search engines with search suggestions based upon words or phrases entered by the user as a query. The invention makes use of ontologies, that is a collection of keywords, phrases and concepts associated with related subject matter. Words and phrases of the user’s query are classified according to whether they relate to concepts present in the ontology or not. The final word or phrase in the user’s entered query is not used in isolation to determine a suggestion, but is rather concatenated with the preceding word or phrase of the query which has been classified as a concept present in the ontology. The applicant alleged that this results in a more accurate suggestion for the user. The hearing officer assessed the contribution against the five signposts to patentability set out in AT&T and found that no technical contribution was provided. Th application was refused. |
| O/373/21 | GB1804914.8 | Innoplexus AG | Mr H Jones | 20 May 2021 | Refused | The invention relates to a computer-implemented system that generates an optimum marketing model for an organisation based on a mix of historical data, calculated effectiveness and realisable potential. The applicant argued that the method is automated and reduces the need for a user to physically input data values, and as such it is technical in character. The hearing officer found that this was inconsistent with the caselaw and therefore refused the application. |
| O/375/21 | GB1604960.3 | Kwesi Jhannon Fanus, Aleksandra Ewa Nalepa-Fanus | Miss J Pullen | 19 May 2021 | Refused | The application describes a network/web based commerce platform for enhancing trade and for improving an on-line interactive experience and for amplifying and facilitating commerce. The platform has a central hub/server/resource that is accessible by a user interface, a developer interface and a supplier interface. A developer provides designated activities for user participation i.e. a game. The supplier interface allows a supplier to offer content, goods and/or services to the developer for use in developing the designated activities for the user. The developer can engineer the activity to promote access to certain content, goods and/or services for the user based on their profile. The hearing officer rejected the applicant’s submissions that the invention made a technical contribution. The hearing officer found the contributions of the independent claims to be excluded from patentability as a scheme, rule or method for doing business and a computer program, as such. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/339/21 | GB1613028.8 | Predrag Paunovic & Nenad Paunovic | Mr B Micklewright | 06 May 2021 | Refused | The invention related to a device for accepting, processing, verifying, unencrypting, tracking, displaying and coordinating data with other similar devices, the data being derived from systems which generate currency in proportion to the amount of energy which they measure, said exchange of data taking place across a common data exchange network. The hearing officer found that the claimed invention was excluded from patentability as a method of doing business as such and, when implemented on a computer, as a program for a computer as such. He also found that the invention was not disclosed clearly and completely enough to be performed by the person skilled in the art. He therefore refused the application. |
| O/332/21 | GB1710361.5 | Pegasystems Inc. | Mr B Buchanan | 05 May 2021 | Refused | The claimed invention relates to collaborative access to a software application or website on a user’s computer over a network. It is designed to facilitate assistance or support to a first user, provided by a second user such as a customer service representative. The invention works by automatically determining a subset of user interface elements on a first user’s computer for presentation to a second computer. A user of the second computer can identify relevant elements which are then highlighted on the first computer, alongside a chat function. The selection of the subset and the highlighting of identified elements are performed in conjunction with an intermediary server which uses structured document properties, attributes and events to transmit only the selected and identified data. Resource, time and complexity is therefore reduced. Security can be enhanced. The Hearing Officer followed the four step Aerotel/Macrossan test to determine whether there was a technical contribution and considered the AT&T signposts. The identified contribution was not found to provide the required technical effect and the claimed invention was found to relate solely to a program for a computer as such, so the application did not meet the requirements of section 1(2)(c). The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/296/21 | GB1808323.8 | Imagination Technologies Limited | Miss J Pullen | 22 April 2021 | Allowed | The invention relates to a method of using a deep neural network (DNN) accelerator for implementing traditional computer vision algorithms. This includes receiving a sequence of traditional computer vision algorithm operations and mapping them to a set of mathematically equivalent neural network primitives. A neural network accelerator processes input data, including images, according to the generated neural network that represents the traditional computer vision algorithm. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan approach and found the invention made a technical contribution over and above its implementation as a computer program, so it was not excluded as a computer program as such. The claimed combination of generating a neural network representing the traditional computer vision algorithm and processing images via that network, using a hardware neural network accelerator, was found to produce a technical effect of processing image data more efficiently and to be a technical solution to a technical problem. |
| O/287/21 | GB1413475.3 | Apple Inc. | Mrs C L Davies | 20 April 2021 | Refused | The invention relates to an editing tool for use on a computer in which a graphical user interface includes a number of user interface controls available for selection by a user as required. The user interface controls are presented to the user on-screen as an animated fan-fold arrangement from which individual interface controls can be selected. Applying the Aerotel/Macrossan 4 step test and the ‘AT&T signposts’, the Hearing Officer found that the invention is a program for a computer, as such, and a presentation of information as such, and is therefore excluded from patentability under Sections 1(2)(c) and 1(2)(d) of the Act. The Hearing Officer did not go on to consider Section 1(2)(b), aesthetic creation. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/221/21 | GB1821275.3 | American Express Travel Related Services Company, Inc. | Mr B Buchanan | 31 March 2021 | Refused | The claimed invention relates to a means for authenticating payment transactions, even when network transmission errors may corrupt the transmitted transaction data. A processor receives three pieces of data from a payment terminal and a payment application; namely an authentication MAC, an integrity MAC, and transaction data. The processor performs a first check on the transaction by using the transaction data to generate a local integrity MAC and comparing that with the received integrity MAC. If the two match the transaction is authenticated. If the two don’t match, a local authentication MAC is generated by the processor using only data which is independent of any transaction data transmitted over the network by the payment terminal. The local authentication MAC is then compared to the received authentication MAC and if the two match the payment transaction is authenticated. As a consequence, valid payment transactions may be authenticated with a secondary localised method of authentication even if a primary authentication fails due to being inadvertently rejected due to transmission integrity errors. Additionally, resources are used only if necessary. The Hearing Officer followed the four step Aerotel/Macrossan test to determine whether there was a technical contribution and considered the AT&T signposts. The contribution was not found to provide the required technical effect and the claimed invention was found to relate solely to a program for a computer and a method for doing business as such, so the application did not meet the requirements of section 1(2)(c). The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/191/21 | GB1815344.5 | Sien Chen | Dr L Cullen | 25 March 2021 | Refused | The invention relates to a computer-implemented method for calculating the value of individual passengers to a passenger transport company such as an airline. A database of feature parameters and corresponding algorithms is used in combination with historical passenger information to train a machine learning model. Passenger information is subsequently input to the model to generate passenger values which can be used to inform financial and marketing decisions. Examples of the feature parameters are a variation tendency parameter, a bad experience parameter, a travel parameter and a booking parameter; the parameters may also include the number of passengers travelling together, social influence information and interest-related information. The invention is claimed as a method and as a machine-learning system. The Hearing Officer agreed with the examiner’s reasoning which followed the four step Aerotel test to determine whether there was a technical contribution and applied the AT&T signposts as modified in HTC. The contribution was found not to provide the required technical effect and hence the claimed invention related solely to a method for doing business and a program for a computer as such. Thus, the application did not meet the requirements of section 1(2)(c) and was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/154/21 | GB1302387.4 | Imosphere Limited | Mr P Thorpe | 11 March 2021 | Refused | The invention relates to characterising the various fields in a form to enable common fields to be used across different forms. It also provides validation rules which can be applied to similar fields across different forms. The characterising also allows for data from different forms to be entered into a single database more easily. The Hearing Officer whilst recognising the improvements provided by the invention considered the contribution to be non-technical and therefore refused the application. |
| O/141/21 | GB1403617.2 | Fisher-Rosemount Systems Inc | Mr P Thorpe | 05 March 2021 | Allowed | The invention relates to a computer implemented method of managing tasks, such as maintenance tasks, within a process plant. The invention detects the presence of a suitable qualified user near a part of the plant needing work and provides to that user on a portable user interface process diagrams detailing the work to be performed. The invention can automatically verify that the work on the plant has been completed. Permission tokens are used to control the access of the user to the plant. The Hearing Officer applying the Aerotel Test found that the contribution provided by the claimed invention, notably the way in which it interacted with the process plant did provide the necessary technical contribution. The application was therefore found not to be excluded as either a program for a computer or a method of doing business. The case was remitted back to the examiner to complete their examination. |
| O/111/21 | GB1604478.6 | GREE Inc | Mr S Brown | 19 February 2021 | Refused | The application relates to creating templates within a computer game that record the positions of items within said game. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and considered the signposts laid out in HTC v Apple and decided that the contribution was not an improved computer interface but rather fell solely within excluded matter. Having decided that the claims were excluded under Section 1(2) The hearing Officer declined to consider the issue of inventive step. The application was refused as relating to no more than a program for a computer as such. |
| O/102/21 | GB1508949.3 | TV Squared Ltd | Mr P Mason | 15 February 2021 | Refused | The invention relates to determining the effectiveness of TV or radio adverts by determining subsequent user actions. The invention classifies user actions by when they happened relative to the advert and may determine other factors such as baseline customer activity, time when the purchase or enquiry was made, or geographic area where the advert was available, for example. In applying the Aerotel steps, the hearing officer found the contribution related to method of analysing user data relating to advertisements in order to more reliably identify the effectiveness of an advertising campaign and associated investment. As such, he found it to be excluded as a method of doing business as such. The application was refused. |
| O/099/21 | GB1722306.6 | Innoplexus AG | Mr P Mason | 11 February 2021 | Refused | The invention relates to refining target data by extracting ‘entity information’. ‘Base entity information’ is obtained comprising ‘base entity units’. Those ‘base entity units’ are prepared into strings of ‘entity information’ and then sorted, labelled and compared to a predefined signature of ‘entity information’. In applying the Aerotel steps, the hearing officer agreed the contribution related to extraction and selection of data by comparison with defined criteria. As a computer implemented invention, the hearing officer found none of the AT&T/CVON signposts pointed to the invention being technical. The hearing officer found the invention to be excluded as a computer program as such. The application was refused. |
| O/057/21 | GB1713282.0 | Kira Inc. | Miss J Pullen | 22 January 2021 | Refused | The invention relates to searching through an electronic text document for passages relating to a desired concept by using a conditional random field algorithm (a class of statistical modelling). A set of training texts are deconstructed by a computer processor to extract features including the text of complete sentences, tokens used in those sentences, the sequencing of those sentences, and the layout and typography of the text. The conditional random field algorithm applies one of two labels to each sentence: relevant to the concept being searched for (also known as “State A”), or background information (“State B”). A search algorithm then returns all those sentences which have been labelled with “State A”, i.e. those sentences relevant to the concept being searched for. Applying the Aerotel approach, the Hearing Officer found the contribution fell within the excluded matter as a program for a computer as such. The application was refused. |
| O/055/21 | GB1720232.6 | Motorola Solutions Inc. | Mr H Jones | 21 January 2021 | Refused | The invention relates to automatically matching ‘user profiles’ to ‘role profiles’ in an emergency incident using machine learning to optimise the deployment of the individuals (‘users’) to the different roles. The computer-based system uses a ‘combinatorial optimisation routine’ to automatically assign particular roles to each user profile using a suitability score. The suitability score is calculated using user profile data (e.g. training records, user experience), and the geographical location of the user. Each user has a communications device which is used to inform them of their assignment. The user devices can function differently depending on the role assigned, and the system is adaptive so that should the incident requirements change, the users can be deployed/redeployed differently. Having assessed the problem addressed by the invention as ensuring efficient allocation of personnel in an incident based on the information available and in providing personnel with the relevant tools to perform their roles effectively, the hearing officer found the invention to be excluded as a computer program and a method of doing business. The application was refused. |
| O/045/21 | GB1505456.2 | Renaissance Technologies LLC | Miss J Pullen | 15 January 2021 | Refused | The invention relates to a computer-based financial trading system and method capable of executing time synchronized trades in multiple exchanges. The system includes a plurality of servers co-located at the financial exchanges and a trading server. The trading server sends multiple financial trade instructions containing orders and an execution time to each of the co-located servers to be submitted to the financial exchange at the execution time whereby the orders are received at the exchanges substantially simultaneously. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan four step test, considered the AT&T/CVON signposts and found that the contribution fell within the excluded categories of a business method and a computer program as such. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/037/21 | GB1612429.9 | Smartglyph Limited | Miss J Pullen | 14 January 2021 | Refused | The invention relates to a system for scanning codes and to a system for augmenting scannable codes to provide enhanced information and content. When an element is scanned a check is performed to see whether the information in the element is associated with a two-dimensional code in a database. When a match is found, the two-dimensional code is decoded and a vector is provided to identify rich media, such as videos, images and documents, that are then forwarded to the scanning device. The hearing officer rejected the applicant’s construction of the claim and found that the contribution related to the linking of the scannable element to the two-dimensional code in the database and this does not make a technical contribution. The application was refused as a program for a computer as such under section |
| O/007/21 | GB1618927.6 | Lenovo (Singapore) Pte. Ltd | Mr P Thorpe | 06 January 2021 | Refused | The invention relates to projecting battery usage on a device such as a computer or mobile phone. More specifically, it involves determining an estimated length of time for which a battery will power an apparatus based on a user selection of applications that they desire to use concurrently and on how long they wish to use each application for. Applying the Aerotel approach, the Hearing Officer found the invention to be excluded as a program for a computer. The application was refused. |
| O/647/20 | GB1521192.3 , GB1521193.1 | Suunto OY | Mr P Thorpe | 22 December 2020 | Refused | GB1521192.3 and GB1521193.1 both disclose smart watches that are able to detect the location of the watch and then suggest an activity route to the user based on the location and other information contained in a thematic database. This could be information relating to pollution or crime levels in the area or information relating to the type of activities already undertaken in the area. The hearing officer did not consider there to be a technical contribution in either application and therefore refused each of them as relating to a computer program. |
| O/636/20 | GB1505704.5 | Gas Tag Ltd. | Miss J Pullen | 16 December 2020 | Refused | The invention relates to a computer-based system for monitoring maintenance of multiple appliances at multiple premises which uses machine readable tags recording an identifier mounted in physical association with the appliances. A portable processing device is provided with a tag reader, a user interface to receive maintenance data input by the maintenance operative and an interface for exchanging data with a remote server. The remote server stores maintenance data for the appliances and has a user interface for providing the maintenance data to users such as landlords, tenants and contractors. The Hearing Officer found that the latest amendments to the application added matter that is not unambiguously disclosed, either explicitly or implicitly in the application. Disregarding the added matter, the Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan four step and found that the contribution fell within the excluded categories as a business method as such. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/633/20 | GB1710518.0 | Motorola Solutions, Inc. | Mr P Thorpe | 15 December 2020 | Refused | The invention relates to dispatching different types of law enforcement patrols in order to achieve a desired deterrent effect on patrol routes. The invention receives information from a law enforcement patrol relating to the nature of the patrol, for example whether it is on foot or by vehicle, and the route that is being taken by that patrol. The invention determines an achieved deterrence effect of that patrol. Historical and/or real-time crime information is used by the invention to then determine a difference between a desired threshold level of deterrence and the achieved level of deterrence for a particular patrol route. The invention will then identify an available type of law enforcement patrol that will compensate for the difference and then cause an available law enforcement patrol to be dispatched to the particular patrol route. The Hearing Officer found the invention to be excluded as a computer program, the presentation of information and as a method of doing business and therefore refused the application. |
| O/632/20 | GB1903870.2 | QCIC Ltd | Mr B Buchanan | 15 December 2020 | Refused | The claimed invention relates to a method of identifying and programming devices to be installed in an environment, such as access control devices in a building, and a system for doing the same. Firstly the Hearing Officer considered whether amendments to the claims made upon entering the national phase constituted added matter and concluded that they did not, because after reading the original specification, which used different terminology in parts, and considering how the invention would be implemented in practice, the skilled person would learn nothing new from the amended claims. Finally the Hearing Officer followed the four step Aerotel/Macrossan test to determine whether there was a technical contribution and considered the AT&T signposts. The identified contribution was not found to provide the required technical effect and the claimed invention was found to relate solely to a program for a computer as such, so the application did not meet the requirements of section 1(2)(c). The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/621/20 | GB1615620.0 | Tree House Technologies Limited | Mr B Micklewright | 11 December 2020 | Refused | The invention related to a messaging system for individuals in which the messages included options which could be selected by individuals. These selected options are then used to update the message for all individuals in the group. The invention could be used for allocating components of a task to individuals, or for collective decision making. The hearing officer found that the contribution related to improvements in an administrative process rather than to technical improvements in a communication system. It did not make a technical contribution. He therefore refused the application as a program for a computer as such and a method of doing business as such under sections 1(1)(d) and 1(2)(c) of the Act. |
| O/612/20 | GB1517371.9 | ProEventa, Inc. | Mrs C L Davies | 07 December 2020 | Refused | The application discusses why it is important to recognize and treat problems and issues that prevent goals and other objectives from being achieved. However, electronic systems, equipment, software, and processes for tracking, treating, and recording results, such as for individuals with special needs, have not improved as significantly. For example, some organizations still use paper documents and charts to track individuals' information or a single computing system available from only one location to enter and review data. As a result, viewing, updating, managing, and sharing, relevant information may be more difficult than it should be. The invention relates to a system and method for tracking outcome specific data. This is achieved by receiving input that defines accounts for service providers as part of a client management programme, where the accounts are stored in a server. Clients are assigned to at least one provider as selected by an administrator. Providers are prompted automatically to provide health data about each of the clients and periodically sending/updating that data. The data received from the providers is compiled and a rule is set to obtain a score associated with the clients’ progress against at least one goal using devices communicating with the server. The compiled data and the score are analysed to determine a status of the client and whether the data has reached a threshold to become significant. Upon the threshold becoming significant an alert including the compiled data is automatically communicated to the provider assigned to the client. The Hearing Officer agreed with the examiner’s reasoning which followed the four step Aerotel test to determine whether there was a technical contribution and applied the AT&T signposts as modified in HTC. The contribution was not found to provide the required technical effect and the claimed invention related solely to a program for a computer and a method for doing business as such, so the application did not meet the requirements of section 1(2)(c). The Hearing Officer also agreed with the examiner that a dependent claim also relates to presentation of information and therefore not meeting the requirement of section 1(2)(d). The Hearing Officer also agreed with the examiner in considering the claims to contain added matter, so the application did not meet the requirements of section 76. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/600/20 | GB1800562.9 | SITA Ypenburg B.V. | Mr B Buchanan | 27 November 2020 | Refused | The claimed invention facilitates interaction between a traveller’s mobile ‘phone, and a self-service bag-drop facility at an airport. The invention works by determining that a user device having a ticket stored on it is in the vicinity of a self-service terminal e.g. using a Bluetooth™ signal, Near Field Communication or scanning a bar code, for example. Once detected, the user device establishes a connection session with a cloud service which acts as a broker between the device and the terminal. The user device also activates an application which receives directional information relating to the terminal via the broker relating to the self-service function. The advantage of this arrangement is that the user device need not communicate directly with the self-service terminal other than to determine it is in the vicinity, and does need to be configured accordingly. As a consequence, interaction is simplified, queuing times may be reduced and user-experience, cost of operation, efficiency and stress may be ameliorated. The Hearing Officer followed the four step Aerotel/Macrossan test to determine whether there was a technical contribution and considered the AT&T signposts. The contribution was not found to provide the required technical effect and the claimed invention was found to relate solely to a program for a computer and a method for doing business as such, so the application did not meet the requirements of section 1(2)(c). The application was refused under section 18(3) |
| O/562/20 | GB1515653.2 | Highlight Games Ltd. | Mr B Micklewright | 11 November 2020 | Refused | The invention related to a virtual gaming console for playing a game. A virtual game is initiated via the user interface and one or more virtual participants are determined and a tag assigned to each participant. A plurality of video clips associated with the tags of the participants are randomly selected from the database. A sequence of video clips from the random selection are rendered and displayed on the display device. A challenge is selected from the challenge database and rendered on the display device. An outcome to the challenge is determined. The hearing officer found that the invention was excluded from patentability as a scheme, rule or method for playing a game and as a program for a computer as such. He therefore refused the application. |
| O/560/20 | GB1820158.2 | Motorola Solutions, Inc. | Mr P Thorpe | 11 November 2020 | Refused | The invention is concerned with a method of representing patrol routes taken by law enforcement patrols and indicating on a map on an electronic device a crime deterrent effect provided by those law enforcement patrols in a geographic area with the effect displayed based on the type of patrol. The description explains that historically it has been difficult to visualise the effect of law enforcement patrols and to link this with crime trends. The Hearing Officer found the invention to be excluded as a computer program, the presentation of information and as a method of doing business and therefore refused the application. |
| O/554/20 | GB1510315.2 | Barclays Execution Services Limited | Dr L Cullen | 09 November 2020 | Refused | The invention relates to a method for the authorisation of transactions, payments or secure log ins. A user device, e.g., a payment card or authentication device, produces a temporary code. This code is transmitted across a network and authenticated by a device at the authentication end producing the same code. The invention combines two values to set the period with which the user device changes the temporary code, the first value is set by the periodic oscillator associated with the user device and the second value is an adjustment value received by the user device via the network from a remote network terminal, such as a point-of-sale terminal. The adjustment factor is variable and its transmission to and use by the user device results in the code being generated more or less frequently. The method takes prevailing conditions in the network into account and will result in fewer transactions not being authenticated. The hearing officer (HO), applying the Aerotel/Macrossan four step test, found that the application as claimed was excluded as a computer programme as such, and as a method of doing business. The HO found that while the invention related to a more reliable authentication method for a payment network, i.e. a method wherein fewer payments are declined. He considered that while the invention allows for the balance between reliability and security to be adjusted because the adjustment factor is increased or decreased depending on information communicated from the point of sale terminal, improving the reliability comes in effect by reducing the security because it is achieved by increasing the adjustment indicator and so the period of time between changes in the temporary and authentication codes. The invention as claimed is excluded under Section 1(2) of the Act as relating to a program for a computer and a method of doing business. It was refused under Section 18(3) of the Act. |
| O/518/20 | GB1602269.1 | Corey Kaizen Reaux-Savonte | Mr B Micklewright | 20 October 2020 | Refused | The invention related to a control system involving Artificial Intelligence (AI). Data may travel down one of two paths. In one path the AI can make certain choices in relation to what actions to perform on the data and in the other path a set of rules is followed without the AI being able to have any input that can influence the result. The system was said to enable the AI to have the ability to consider conscious and subconscious inputs when deriving an output. The hearing officer held that the contribution made by the invention fell wholly in the excluded field of a program for a computer as such. He also found that claim 1 was not clear and that the invention had not been disclosed clearly and completely enough to be performed by a person skilled in the art. He therefore refused the application. |
| O/464/20 | GB1612864.7 , GB1612865.4 | Adobe Systems Incorporated | Mr P Mason | 15 October 2020 | Refused | These applications concern image searching, specifically using machine learning to identify image attributes and to then search for those attributes within other images. The applicant alleged the inventions make the writing of software easier and make a computer device better by running more effectively because it is easier to program. As such, the applicant drew analogy with Apple’s invention in HTC/Apple. The Hearing Officer applied the four step test set out in Aerotel/Macrossan and considered the AT&T signposts. He concluded the contribution fell solely within excluded matter. The hearing officer did not agree with the similarity to Apple’s invention. The hearing officer noted a direct comparison with Autonomy and followed the judge’s highly persuasive comments. Accordingly the application was refused as no more than a program for a computer as such. |
| O/427/20 | GB1510444.1 | Hitachi, Ltd. | Mr B Buchanan | 08 September 2020 | Refused | The application relates to reducing the risk of a patient being readmitted when being referred to a different hospital. The claimed invention comprises a readmission risk calculation unit for informing a decision as to whether or not to refer a patient to a particular medical institution. The readmission risk is calculated on the basis of patient information and information about the potential referral destination medical institution. A patient referral request is presented to the destination institution if the calculated risk is below a threshold. The Applicant alleged that the invention provided a more reliable notification and that the inherently physical nature of the invention reduced network burden, improved patient information security and allowed more efficient use of resources. The Applicant sought to support their argument by analogy with the improved alarm of PKTWO. The Hearing Officer followed the four step Aerotel/Macrossan test to determine whether there was a technical contribution and considered the AT&T signposts. He also took account of PKTWO. The contribution was not found to provide the required technical effect and the claimed invention related solely to a program for a computer and a method for doing business as such, so the application did not meet the requirements of section 1(2)(c). The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/402/20 | GB1708043.3 | F Secure Corporation | Mr H Jones | 19 August 2020 | Refused | The application relates to a proxy server that provides fake data relating to a user’s web browsing activities to tracking services on the internet. The proxy server identifies any requests that the client devices are sending which relate to tracking services. A small number of these requests are initially sent to the tracking service and the responses to these initial requests are then stored and analysed to generate a recipe. Subsequent requests from clients are not sent to the tracking service, but rather a ‘fake’ response is generated based on the recipe, one which will be acceptable to the tracking services but which will not disclose real information about the users. The invention is said to improve user privacy while still allowing websites and client devices to operate properly. The Hearing Officer considered that the contribution made by the invention could not be judged in the light of a single piece of prior art but rather it should be determined against the state of the art as a whole. This meant that the contribution assessed by the Hearing Officer was different to that put forward by the applicant and was eventually found not to be technical. The application was refused as relating to a computer program as such. |
| O/345/20 | GB1509562.3 | Motorola Solutions, Inc. | Mr P Thorpe | 04 August 2020 | Refused | The invention is concerned with video tagging and analytics and more particularly to systems and methods for using Computer Assisted Dispatch (CAD) incident reports for video tagging, searching, analytics or the like. The method involves extracting keywords from a CAD incident report and creating a small, focused, and incident-specific dictionary on which to perform video searching in real-time or later. The description suggests that the small, focused, and incident- specific dictionary increases tagging accuracy and reduces tagging processing time with respect to video analytics. Further, the invention can continually update the incident- specific dictionary as the CAD incident report is updated and as the incident of interest plays out. An alert can also be provided. The Hearing Officer applying Aerotel and considering the signposts provided by AT&T/CVON found the invention as currently claimed and as claimed in an auxiliary claim set to be excluded as a progam for a computer as such. The application was refused. |
| O/333/20 | GB1604161.8 | Dr. Wei Wu | Mr B Buchanan | 23 June 2020 | Allowed | The application relates to the field of auscultation, otherwise known as audification. Audification is the process of transforming inaudible signals into an audible format. A simple example is a stethoscope, rendering the beat of the heart audible. The present invention enables the audification of signals which are inaudible e.g. because the frequency of data sampling or variation is too low or too high, or because it does not vary with time; for example, it may vary by location, trajectory or by sample dataset. The application achieves this by extracting a waveform from a signal A, divorcing the signal of time-series data if the signal is time-variant, and mapping the waveform into an audible signal B by combining the waveform with an independent audible play rate. The Hearing Officer construed the claim broadly, determining that some conditional limitations were not essential and did not affect the scope of the claim. He found that the examiner was not estopped from raising an objection to excluded matter at a late stage and that the application relates to patentable subject matter not excluded by section 1(2) as a program for a computer, but found the claims in their current form to be insufficient for excessive claim breadth. However, he concluded that if the claims were amended so as to clearly limit their scope to define signal A being voltage change of an electronic circuit representing electromagnetic interference distribution on a circuit board, they would potentially satisfy section 14(3) and consequentially section 3. The application was remitted to the Examiner to await a response from the Applicant. |
| O/327/20 | GB1213491.2 | Gaiasoft IP Limited | Dr L Cullen | 18 June 2020 | Refused | The invention relates to an apparatus for preparing a profile-based characterisation of the participants in a venue, this profile being based on the identifying content communicated from the devices of the participants in the venue and from known modelling techniques. The profile is used to dynamically adjust a wide range of variables to deliver output that is better targeted to the participants, for example to the displays within or around the defined venue. A dynamic aggregate profile of participants present in the venue may be created, the dynamic aggregate profile being constantly updated in response to changes in the participant population and being used to determine appropriate content to deliver. The content delivered may be media/advertising or may be an output to a control system of the venue. The hearing officer (HO) found that the claims on file at the time of the hearing related to matter not disclosed in the application as filed, upholding in part the objection raised by the examiner. Excluding the added matter from the invention as claimed, the HO, applying the Aerotel/Macrossan four step test, found that the application as claimed was excluded as a computer programme as such, and as a method of doing business. A further set of claims filed shortly after the hearing as agreed, were also found by the HO to be excluded under section 1(2) as a computer programme as such, and as a method of doing business. Although, it appeared that there was a possible route for amendment, another further set of claims subsequently filed by the applicant were found to relate to a computer programme as such, and to a method of doing business. The application was refused for failing to meet the requirements of the Act under Section 18(3). |
| O/227/20 | GB1509528.4 | Mr Thomas Michael Anderson | Mr P Mason | 11 June 2020 | Refused | The application relates to constructing and controlling groups of incomplete anagrams and their solution vowels. The examiner had concluded the claimed invention was excluded under section 1(2)(c) and (d) as a scheme, rule or method for playing a game and/or the presentation of information. Further the examiner was unable to see anything in the application which could form the basis of a patentable invention. The decision was made on the papers on file. The Hearing Officer applied the four-step approach set out in the Court of Appeal judgment in Aerotel. He decided that the contribution made by the invention is not technical in nature. He found that the contribution falls solely within excluded subject matter as no more than a scheme or method for playing a game and the presentation of information as such. The application was refused. |
| O/305/20 | GB1610337.6 | Lenovo (Singapore) Pte. Ltd. | Mrs C L Davies | 03 June 2020 | Refused | The invention relates to a method of modifying search results based on context characteristics. Due to the increase in storage space and storage location, a user may store vast amounts of information. However, users may find it difficult to remember exactly where a particular file is stored. To assist in finding particular files or information, many applications have search features which allow a user to input a search query to assist in finding the particular files or information. In order to find the desired information a user has to enter a search query with some level of specificity. However, it may be difficult for a user to provide a search query with unambiguous terms that the search feature can use to provide pertinent search results. To overcome such issues, the application considers it would be useful if the search interfaces could use context data to assist in performing a relevant search and also to assist in defining ambiguous terms. Therefore, in order to allow a user to return desired results from a search, the invention provides a method of returning search results narrowed by context characteristics relating to the user. On applying the Aerotel/Macrossan test, the Hearing Officer found that the claimed invention was excluded as a computer program as such. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/284/20 | GB1520019.9 | Corey Kaizen Reaux-Savonte | Mr H Jones | 19 May 2020 | Refused | The application is concerned with a structure and organisation of AI code that replicates the structure of DNA code in nature, which will allow for reproduction and healing of AI code in future. The hearing officer found that the invention related to a program for a computer as such and the application was refused. |
| O/271/20 | GB1610140.4 | Lenovo (Singapore) Pte. Ltd. | Miss J Pullen | 05 May 2020 | Refused | The invention provides for compression of content elements involving selection of content for compression based on storage costs of the content and determining a compression rate for the content, again based on storage costs of the content. The storage costs of the content includes the financial costs of power consumption and hardware for the content. The compression is carried out using conventional compression algorithms. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan four step test, considered the AT&T/CVON signposts and found that the contribution fell within the excluded categories of a business method and a computer program as such. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/245/20 | GB1522765.5 | Lenovo (Singapore) Pte. Ltd | Mr P Thorpe | 21 April 2020 | Refused | The invention relates to a method of accepting handwritten editing input in a computer between two handwriting units, and dynamically growing an insertion handwriting unit to accommodate the new handwriting ink strokes, and dynamically reflowing the handwriting units based on the insertion handwriting unit size. The hearing officer found that, whilst the invention related to a better computer progam, it did not provide the necessary technical contribution. The application was therefore refused on the basis that the claimed invention related to a program for a computer. |
| O/236/20 | GB1810113.9 | Motorola Solutions, Inc | Mr P Thorpe | 16 April 2020 | Refused | The invention is concerned with assisting users, such as first responders by updating information in a timeline record of a public safety incident. More specifically the invention provides a method whereby in response to an oral query from the user information relating to a safety incident is retrieved and added to a timeline record of that incident. The hearing officer applying Aerotel found the invention excluded as both a program for a computer and a method of doing business. The application was refused. |
| O/096/20 | GB1500830.3 | Indix Corporation | Miss J Pullen | 14 February 2020 | Refused | The invention relates to efficient means for obtaining updated price and product information from web pages. It relates to search engines, which search and index data from a multitude of web pages using web crawlers (sometimes referred to as spiders) which follow uniform resource indicators (URIs) to obtain content. Users are then able to search the indexed content, and to access cached content or the original webpage. Acknowledged prior art search engines do not give any priority to price and product information in the content, since it may comprise a very small proportion of the overall webpage content in terms of data, although it may be the most significant information to the user. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan four step test, considered the AT&T/CVON signposts and found that the contribution fell within the excluded categories of a business method and a computer program as such. The application was refused under S18(3). |
| O/030/20 | GB1818033.1 | Motorola Solutions, Inc | Mr P Thorpe | 16 January 2020 | Refused | The invention claimed in the application, which was a divisional application, relates to the pursuit of fugitives. More specifically, it involves analysing various input data to predict the likely route of the fugitive and then outputting directions to direct pursuit assets to capture the fugitive at a determined capture location. The Hearing Officer found that claimed invention was excluded from patentability as a program for a computer and a method of doing business, as such. The application was therefore refused. The decision also considered whether an earlier decision on the parent application had created an estoppel in respect of the divisional and whether the filing of the divisional in the window between the hearing on the parent and the decision on the parent constituted an abuse of process. Whilst questioning the desirability of the applicant’s actions, the Hearing Officer did not go on to find that any estoppel had been created or that they was any abuse of process sufficient to warrant not considering the divisional. |
| O/017/20 | GB1522321.7 | Lenovo (Singapore) Pte. Ltd. | Mr B Buchanan | 13 January 2020 | Allowed | The present invention relates to disambiguating user handwriting input to a computing device via a touchscreen; in other words to more closely match a detected user input with what was intended. It works by processing handwriting strokes to determine candidate input words, spell-checking these and then ranking the results based on combined weighted scores of both the candidate and spell-check words. A ranked list is displayed to a user and the top ranked result is provided as an input to a software application running on the device. The Hearing Officer followed the four step Aerotel test to determine whether there was a technical contribution. He applied the relevant AT&T signposts as modified in HTC v Apple and the wider reasoning in that decision. He paid close attention to the breadth of the contribution and the field of endeavour as considered in Landmark Graphics. The contribution was found to provide the required technical effect and to meet the requirements of section 1(2)(c). The application was remitted to the examiner for processing under section 18(3) before grant. |
| O/774/19 | GB1813830.5 | ION Geophysical Corporation | Mrs C L Davies | 16 December 2019 | Allowed | The invention relates to a networked system for sharing data between multiple installations, structures, vessels, or other resources (i.e., operators or entities) that may be operating in a marine environment, such as an oil and gas marine field. The data shared between the operators allows each operator to optimize its operations and complete tasks in a more efficient manner. The marine operation can include seismic operation, drilling operation, vessel operation (e.g., tanker, support vessel, chase vessel, fishing vessel), diving operation, anchoring operation, rig operation, maintenance operation, surveillance operation, etc. Each of these marine operations have various operational plans associated with them that call for a number of tasks to be performed and positions in the area to be traversed, closed off, travelled, etc. at different times. The operational plans can therefore involve task information related to the particular tasks to be conducted and can involve positioning and timing information related to the particular tasks in the area. The marine field may involve several operators performing different and dissimilar operations over time. Therefore, the operators (e.g., production vessel, marine structure, support vessel, seismic vessel, etc.) need to coordinate their operational plans, anticipate conflicts or issues, and defend against threats from obstacles, weather, and other conditions so all of the various marine operations can be efficiently completed in the marine field. The invention identifies linkages between dissimilar operations of the operators such that they coordinate their operations in order to be more efficient in how they work. On applying the Aerotel/Macrossan test, the Hearing Officer found that the invention claimed was not excluded as a computer program as such and a business method as such. The application was remitted to the examiner for further processing. |
| O/761/19 | GB1610166.9 | Adobe Systems Incorporated | Mrs S E Chalmers | 12 December 2019 | Refused | The application provides techniques whereby clickstream data of interactions with online resources by unknown visitors are associated with known visitors. A visitor identification module identifies individuals using an information retrieval model based on features of clickstream data which correspond to attributes of web traffic and are selected for completeness, consistency and uniqueness. Weights are associated with each factor to tune the influence of different factors on a relevance score. If a threshold score is achieved the clickstream data is merged with a profile of that individual. The Hearing Officer applied the four-step approach set out in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the judgments in Symbian, AT&T and HTC amongst others and found that the invention was excluded as a method of doing business and program for a computer as such. The application was refused. |
| O/754/19 | GB1603975.2 | Lenovo (Singapore) Pte. Ltd | Mr P Mason | 10 December 2019 | Refused | The application relates to purchasing one or more items using contactless payment devices such as credit cards, debit cards, key fobs and smartcards that use radio-frequency identification for making secure payment. In the invention, the user presents multiple contactless payment devices to a reader each relating to a separate payment account. The payment is split automatically between a plurality of payment accounts according to one or more user preferences. The Hearing Officer applied the four-step approach set out in the Court of Appeal judgment in Aerotel and considered the AT&T signposts. He decided that the contribution made by the invention is not technical in nature. He found that the contribution falls solely within excluded subject matter as no more than a program for a computer and a method for doing business as such. The application was refused. |
| O/719/19 | GB1813366.0 | Beijing Didi Infinity Technology and Development Co Ltd | Mr S Brown | 26 November 2019 | Refused | The application is concerned with providing a transportation service comprising one or more taxis or private cars. A processor receives a transport request from a user and estimates both a time it will take to fulfil the request and a hypothetical time to fulfil the request if it were switched to a car pool. The user is then provided with a recommendation to switch to a carpool service if that time is shorter. The Hearing Officer applied the reasoning in Aerotel/Macrossan and decided that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter. He also considered the AT&T/Cvon signposts, as modified by HTC v Apple, and Halliburton Energy Services Inc’s Applications and concluded that the contribution did not have a relevant technical effect. The application was refused as being no more than a program for a computer and a method of doing business as such. |
| O/712/19 | GB1420980.3 | Intuit Inc | Mr P Thorpe | 21 November 2019 | Refused | The invention concerns a method of conducting a financial transaction using a point of sales terminal and a customer’s portable electronic device. The device displays a bar code on its screen corresponding to a one-time payment credential token. This is read by a bar code reader attached to the point of sale terminal. The terminal then converts the token to the data necessary for a financial transaction before sending the data to the customer’s financial institution. The token is generated in a trusted execution environment on the customer’s device. The Hearing Officer found the invention to be excluded as a computer program as such and a method for doing business. The application was refused. |
| O/710/19 | GB1416583.1 | Intuit Inc | Mrs S E Chalmers | 21 November 2019 | Refused | The application provides a method for extracting data from an electronic document, such as an invoice, received with a message from an electronic address of the sender by iteratively selecting a map from a subset of maps, each of which is associated with the electronic address of the sender and includes data field definitions; determining whether the location data of document elements and data fields of the selected map identify the same location; if the locations are the same, the value of data fields of the selected map are extracted from document elements, and if the locations are not the same, a new map from the subset is selected; calculations are performed on the values of data fields and the results stored in an XML file on a data store. The Hearing Officer applied the four-step approach set out in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the judgments in Symbian, AT&T and HTC amongst others and found that the invention was excluded as a method of doing business and program for a computer as such. The application was refused. |
| O/638/19 | GB1322615.4 | Clarity Markets Holdings LLC | Mr P Mason | 23 October 2019 | Refused | The application relates to an online auction trading platform, that is realised in a networked computer system, for trading biddable financial instruments. In the invention, the platform projects, for each of a plurality of impending auctions, a final clearing rate that would result from each transaction. The clearing rate is displayed along with any submitted bids to enable more transparent and expedient auctions. The Hearing Officer applied the four-step approach set out in the Court of Appeal judgment in Aerotel. He decided that the contribution made by the invention is not technical in nature. He found that the contribution falls solely within excluded subject matter as no more than the presentation of information, a program for a computer and a method for doing business as such. The application was refused. |
| O/636/19 | GB1407511.3 | Thomson Reuters Global Resources Unlimited Company | Mr B Buchanan | 21 October 2019 | Refused | The application relates to a method of providing a database of contracts to enable a user to identify preferred wording when drafting a contract. This is achieved by merging a collection of related existing contract texts, comprising contract clauses, into a cluster based on a similarity comparison with a threshold. The similarity measurement is determined according to a calculated centroid value for each corpus. Following a merge, a new centroid value for the cluster is estimated rather than recalculated, saving computational resource. A model contract is developed based on the probabilities of certain contract clauses appearing in the cluster. This model contract is representative of the “market standard” language for a particular type of contract. Portions of contract text (e.g. clauses) can then be compared to the model to determine how much they deviate from it (using a so-called “novelty measurement”) and the results can be provided to a user, to facilitate the drawing up of a contract. The Hearing Officer agreed with the examiner’s reasoning which followed the four step Aerotel test to determine whether there was a technical contribution and applied the AT&T signposts as modified in HTC. The contribution was not found to provide the required technical effect and the claimed invention related solely to a program for a computer and a method for doing business as such, so the application did not meet the requirements of section 1(2)(c). The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/611/19 | GB1715687.8 | Google LLC | Mrs C L Davies | 09 October 2019 | Allowed | The invention relates to identifying a user at a particular location. In the application the invention is described in an embodiment concerning a transaction between a customer (user) and a merchant. A merchant and a user register with a payment processing system, which establishes a facial template based on a user image. The user signs into a payment application via a user computing device, which receives an identifier from a merchant beacon device to transmit to the payment processing system. The payment processing system transmits facial templates to the merchant camera device for other users who are also signed in to the payment application in range of the merchant beacon device. The merchant camera device compares a captured facial image against the received facial templates to identify the user. A merchant POS device operator selects an account of the user. The merchant POS device transmits transaction details to the payment processing system, which processes the transaction with an issuer system. The payment processing system receives an approval of the transaction authorization request and transmits a receipt to the merchant POS device. Taking the Windsurfing/Pozzoli approach, the Hearing Officer found that the invention claimed did involve an inventive step. On applying the Aerotel/Macrossan test, the Hearing Officer found that the invention claimed was not excluded as a computer program as such and a business method as such. The application was remitted to the examiner for further processing. |
| O/610/19 | GB1418140.8 | Mastercard International Incorporated | Miss J Pullen | 09 October 2019 | Refused | The invention relates to displaying, on a consumer device, information which relates to a product which is featured in digital media and is available for purchase in order to facilitate and expedite the transaction process without detracting from the digital media. A device receives an index of the product(s) available to be purchased with the digital media along with product locations and product identification numbers. When a product selection indication is received from a user a product data set, including information to initiate the transaction, is received from a product database and product information can then be displayed to the user. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan four step test, considered the AT&T/CVON signposts and found that the contribution fell within the excluded categories of a business method and a computer program as such. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/549/19 | GB1716526.7 | Adobe Systems Incorporated | Mrs C L Davies | 19 September 2019 | Refused | The invention relates to a method and system for recommending software actions to create an image and recommending images to demonstrate the effects of software actions. Asset processing applications may recommend actions to a designer who is editing a particular asset e.g. images, videos, audio files, drawings, and the like. In contrast to systems that recommend actions (e.g., software edits) based on a history of edits applied by a designer to show the designer new or unexplored features of an asset processing application, the application describes techniques for recommending actions for an asset provided by the designer (e.g., for an image being edited by the designer) selected according to a distance measure between the asset provided by the designer and a plurality of representations of actions. A projection function is used to transform representations of assets to a same dimension as representations of actions, in order to enable calculation of the distance measure in a vector space. Based on comparisons in the vector space, recommendations of software actions and assets can be made that reflect a "closeness" in the vector space according to the joint embedding learned by the projection function. The Hearing Officer heard arguments from the applicant on the standard of proof required by examiners in objecting to inventions relating to excluded subject-matter and on how the invention is similar to the invention set out in Vicom which had been found to be patentable. On applying the Aerotel/Macrossan test, the Hearing Officer found that the invention claimed was excluded as a computer program as such and a mathematical method as such. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/530/19 | GB1602643.7 | Adobe Systems Incorporated | Miss J Pullen | 09 September 2019 | Refused | The invention relates to Internet web browsers. Specifically, the claimed invention provides a computer program (or “computerized method”) for more effectively loading content from a web page. It does so by indexing links in a current page, creating a “trigger area” around each link, and preloading and caching content associated with a link if a cursor enters its trigger area. If the link is subsequently clicked in the usual way, the target page is loaded using the cached content. By preloading and caching content in this way, the user experiences a quicker transition to the target page once a link is subsequently selected. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan four step test, considered the AT&T/CVON signposts and found that the contribution fell solely within the excluded category of a computer program as such. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/500/19 | GB1602421.8, GB1602422.6, GB1602423.4 | Testplant Europe Limited | Mr S Brown | 28 August 2019 | Refused | The three applications each provide a method for establishing a test program, running on a first computing apparatus, that tests another computer program running on a second computing apparatus. The difference between the applications is the way in which a sequence of actions is generated by the test program and applied to the system under test. In GB‘423.4 all possible actions are tested except for actions omitted by a precondition. In GB‘422.6 the sequence of actions takes into account previous actions in the current, or earlier, tests. In GB‘421.8 test description sections are associated with each action. The Hearing Officer applied the reasoning in Aerotel/Macrossan and decided that the contribution made by each invention fell solely within excluded matter. He also considered the AT&T/Cvon signposts, as modified by HTC v Apple, and concluded that the contributions did not have relevant technical effects. All three applications were refused as being no more than programs for a computer as such. |
| O/461/19 | GB1501493.9 | Suunto OY | Mr P Mason | 08 August 2019 | Allowed | The application relates to a system and method whereby events can be created and joined using data collected from multiple sports watches. Each sports watch collects sport-specific data and transmits the data to a remote computer which compares the data submitted. If the data is found to indicate a common context, the computer can create an event. Typically, a tentative event is created which can be either approved or rejected by the users. Once accepted, the users can share data such as heart rate data in real time. The Hearing Officer applied the four-step approach set out in the Court of Appeal judgment in Aerotel. The Hearing Officer found the contribution made by the invention to be technical in nature and to fall outside the excluded matter of a program for a computer and a method for doing business as such. The application was remitted to the examiner for further processing. |
| O/434/19 | GB1519366.7 | Ocado Innovation Limited | Mr B Buchanan | 25 July 2019 | Refused | The claimed invention is directed towards determining how to fulfil online customer orders for products by analysing requirements and capabilities and identifying options for fulfilment from a large and/or a small fulfilment centre using a standard predefined container size. As well as the claims on file, a main and two auxiliary claims requests were considered at the hearing. These added the features of causing automated operation; taking account of robotic picker characteristics within a fulfilment centre; and optimising decisions using reinforcement learning / AI. The Hearing Officer followed the four step Aerotel test to determine whether there was a technical contribution. He applied the first of the AT&T signposts as modified in HTC and took account of Halliburton and Cappellini. He also referred to the EPO Guidelines for Examination on Artificial intelligence and machine learning. For each of the claim sets, the contribution was not found to provide the required technical effect and he found that the claimed invention related solely to a method for doing business and a program for a computer as such, so the application did not meet the requirements of section 1(2)(c). The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/360/19 | GB1513354.9, GB1513362.2, GB1513405.9 | Adobe | Mr H Jones | 24 July 2019 | Refused | All three applications are concerned with inventions that assist marketing professionals in creating marketing activities by improving their awareness regarding the success of previously deployed marketing activities. Tracking data from previous deployment can enable marketers to choose content and content creators best suited to the marketing activity being created. Metadata recording the nature of the device used or the environmental conditions when creating content can be tracked and associated with an indication of effective deployment of content. Content can also me rated based on usage. In all three applications, the hearing officer found that the inventions related to both a method of doing business and a program for a computer as such, and the applications were refused. |
| O/421/19 | GB1515481.8 | GE Aviation Systems LLC | Mr P Mason | 22 July 2019 | Refused | The application is concerned with managing a maintenance routine for an aircraft with a maintenance system comprising multiple mobile communication terminals such as laptops located about the aircraft in data communication with each other. A controller executes a maintenance software program comprising maintenance tests corresponding to components of the aircraft. A maintenance test is assigned to the terminal located closest to a component under test. An ultimate user, such as the pilot, is allowed via their terminal to take control of a maintenance test being executed by a user at a different terminal. The Hearing Officer applied the four-step test set out in the Court of Appeal judgment in Aerotel and considered the AT&T signposts. He decided that the contribution made by the invention is not technical in nature. He found that the contribution falls solely within excluded subject matter as no more than a program for a computer and a method for doing business as such. The application was refused. |
| O/420/19 | GB1513359.8 | Adobe Systems Incorporated | Mr B Buchanan | 22 July 2019 | Refused | The present invention relates to improving marketing activity, by making suggestions for ways to process content which have been successful in the past. Within a digital environment, which may include an online community of users, tracking data from previous activity deployment can enable marketers to identify content processing suited to the current marketing activity being created and consequently to make suggestions for processing available to content creators. This is achieved by comparing content creation metadata corresponding to selected potential marketing characteristics with content creation metadata used in prior marketing activities based on tracked deployment. The Hearing Officer followed the four step Aerotel test to determine whether there was a technical contribution. He applied the AT&T signposts as modified in HTC and took account of Halliburton. The contribution was not found to provide the required technical effect and he found that the claimed invention related solely to a method for doing business and a program for a computer as such so the application did not meet the requirements of section 1(2)(c). The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/412/19 | GB1513401.8 | Adobe Systems Inc | Dr L Cullen | 17 July 2019 | Refused | The invention relates to a method and system to facilitate improved commissioning of marketing content based on attributes of content previously created by potential content providers. This allows a marketer to commission new content from creators that have previously created content of the type the marketer wants for a particular marketing activity. The hearing officer, applying the Aerotel/Macrossan four step test, found that the application as claimed was excluded as a business method. The contribution was found to be the use of known search techniques to automate the selection of content creators for a marketing campaign, this was found to be nothing more than a business process and not technical in nature. As the method would be implemented by a program for a computer, the signposts set out in AT&T, as modified in HTC v Apple, were subsequently considered to determine whether the computer program nevertheless made a contribution that was technical. No technical contribution was found. The application was refused under section 18(3) of the Act. |
| O/402/19 | GB1522448.8 | ABB Technology AG | Mr S Brown | 12 July 2019 | Refused | The application relates to the display screen of a tool which is used for configuring field devices. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and considered the signposts laid out in HTC v Apple and decided that the contribution made by the invention was excluded as a program for a computer, as such. The Hearing Officer then considered Gemstar v Virgin Media and decided that the contribution was also excluded as the presentation of information, as such. The application was thus refused under section 18(3). |
| O/401/19 | GB1513413.4 | Adobe Inc | Mr H Jones | 12 July 2019 | Refused | The application relates a computer-implemented system allowing for collaborative creation and editing of content, providing time-limited access to content as part of a workflow and with users having different creation/editing rights in order to improve the efficiency of the workflow. The hearing officer found that the invention related to a method of doing business and a program for a computer as such. The application was refused. |
| O/398/19 | GB1519259.4 | Lenovo (Singapore) Pte. Ltd | Mr P Thorpe | 12 July 2019 | Refused | The invention relates to accessing information, which is stored on multiple remote devices. In particular it relates to an aggregate service device, which collects information from remote devices and cloud services, which can then be displayed in the form of file system data using a file manager interface. The aggregate service device also holds an index of data it can retrieve, which can be searched. The hearing officer concluded that the invention did not provide a technical contribution but was rather a new method of data processing. The application was refused as a computer progam as such. |
| O/397/19 | GB1513414.1 | Adobe Systems Incorporated | Mr H Jones | 12 July 2019 | Refused | The application relates a method of predicting the effectiveness of online advertising by correlating click data and conversion data over time and generating various prediction values, allowing selection of subsequent online advertising based on the effectiveness of earlier performance. The hearing officer found that the invention related to a method of doing business and a program for a computer as such. The application was refused. |
| O/395/19 | GB1512512.3 | Adobe Systems Incorporated | Mr H Jones | 12 July 2019 | Refused | The application relates a computer system for assisting marketing professionals to leverage social media by monitoring posts for references to keywords relating to a product (or brand) and generating a comparison chart in real-time based on the comparative sentiments found in social media in respect of the product and of competing products. The hearing officer found that the invention was related a method of doing business and a program for a computer as such. The application was refused. |
| O/375/19 | GB1502844.2 | Motorola Solutions Inc. | Mr P Mason | 05 July 2019 | Allowed | The application relates to a method and related apparatus for identifying suspect devices across multiple criminal events at different locations. In particular the invention involves taking information from a large number of mobile devices (e.g. mobile phones); identifying a subset of devices common to two separate criminal events; determining route information for this subset of devices; and activating cameras along a predicted path. The Hearing Officer applied the four-step approach set out in the Court of Appeal judgment in Aerotel and considered in particular the first AT&T signpost. The Hearing Officer found the contribution made by the invention to have a technical effect on a process which is carried on outside the computer and therefore to fall outside the excluded matter of a program for a computer and a method for doing business as such. The application was remitted to the examiner for further processing. |
| O/370/19 | GB1518601.8 | Eurotherm Ltd | Mrs S E Chalmers | 02 July 2019 | Refused | The invention provides an alleged contribution of a means for generating a calibration certificate or error report wherein a calibration task is sent to a portable device by a management device, an instrument is identified and data is sequentially input into the portable device form the instrument and a pre-calibrated measurement device exposed to the same conditions as the instrument; the integrity of the inputted data being verified and then being re-entered if necessary. The Hearing Officer applied the four-step approach set out in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the judgments in Symbian, AT&T and HTC amongst others and found that the invention was excluded as a method of doing business and program for a computer as such. The application was refused. |
| O/346/19 | GB1116612.1 | Fisher-Rosemount Systems, Inc. | Miss J Pullen | 19 June 2019 | Allowed | The invention relates to managing process control data. Process data from the field devices is provided to a workstation which displays process data using a corresponding electronic device description language (EDDL) file. In the prior art the entire database may need to be searched in order to locate the process data referenced in the EDDL file and if the location of the process data is changed in the database system then the EDDL files for each field device have to be updated accordingly. The present invention aims to solve these issues by providing a standardised common file format for storing process data using descriptor files of a standardised form which can take over some of the roles of the EDDL files. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan four step test, considered the AT&T/CVON signposts and found that the contribution fell outside the excluded categories. The application was remitted back to the examiner for further processing. |
| O/310/19 | GB151957.0 | Lenovo (Singapore) Pte. Ltd | Mr S Brown | 03 June 2019 | Refused | The application relates to a data aggregating service which allows a user to access their information irrespective of its location on a local device, remote devices or cloud services. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and considered the signposts laid out in HTC v Apple and decided that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter. The application was refused as no more than a program for a computer as such. |
| O/304/19 | GB1513640.1 | Adobe Inc | Mrs S E Chalmers | 31 May 2019 | Refused | The invention provides an alleged contribution of a system for replacing a current policy for selecting advertisements to be communicated to client devices with a new policy if statistical guarantees indicate a level of confidence that the predicted performance, such as in terms of revenue, number of selections or number of conversions, of a new policy is the same as, or better than, the current policy. The Hearing Officer applied the four-step approach set out in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the judgments in Symbian, AT&T and HTC amongst others and found that the invention was excluded as a method of doing business and program for a computer as such. The application was refused. |
| O/303/19 | GB1513017.2 | Adobe Inc | Mrs S E Chalmers | 31 May 2019 | Refused | The invention provides an alleged contribution of a method of replacing a current policy used to select advertisements with a new policy which is predicted to exceed a threshold of performance, such as in terms of revenue, number of selections and/or number of conversions, with a defined level of confidence from statistical guarantees; the new policy being identified by line searching a plurality of policies expressed using high-dimensional vectors in a direction in a policy space that is expected to point towards a region where policies are predicted to exceed the performance threshold; then selecting and communicating an advertisement to a client device using the new policy. The Hearing Officer applied the four-step approach set out in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the judgments in Symbian, AT&T and HTC amongst others and found that the invention was excluded as a method of doing business and program for a computer as such. The application was refused. |
| O/302/19 | GB1512827.5 | Adobe Inc | Mrs S E Chalmers | 31 May 2019 | Refused | The invention provides an alleged contribution of a system for replacing an existing policy for selecting advertisements with a new policy generated by adjusting high-dimensional vectors that express the policies; estimating the performance of the new policies, such as in relation to revenue, number of selections or number of conversions, and calculating statistical guarantees of the estimates; and replacing the existing policy with the new policy if the statistical guarantees indicate that the new policy is likely to meet or exceed the performance of the existing policy. The Hearing Officer applied the four-step approach set out in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the judgments in Symbian, AT&T and HTC amongst others and found that the invention was excluded as a method of doing business and program for a computer as such. The application was refused. |
| O/287/19 | GB1222279.0 | Ariadne Insight Limited | Mr B Buchanan | 28 May 2019 | Refused | The present invention relates to spreadsheets, and specifically to the problem of a 32 bit spreadsheet application having insufficient addressable memory available to enable complex functions to be run. The invention also addresses the problem of certain types of structured data being incompatible with the contents of a cell in a spreadsheet. The invention provides a computer program comprising a framework having user-defined functions which can be called from a cell in a spreadsheet to then run in a separate process in memory. The program runs separately to but in conjunction with the spreadsheet application. This solution effectively increases the limits of addressable memory available to the spreadsheet software by using the memory of the second process without adding to the memory footprint of the spreadsheet application. It can provide access to structured data within the framework via a pointer from a cell in the spreadsheet. The Hearing Officer followed the four step Aerotel test to determine whether there was a technical contribution. He applied the AT&T signposts as modified in HTC. The contribution was not found to provide the required technical effect and the claimed invention related solely to a program for a computer as such so the application did not meet the requirements of section 1(2)(c). The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/286/19 | GB1306492.8 | ABB Technology AG | Mr B Micklewright | 24 May 2019 | Allowed | The invention related to the configuration of technical equipment by propagating configuration changes from a master to a duplicate whilst checking for any conflicts. Despite the independent claims having a number of clarity issues, the hearing officer was able to construe the claims and concluded that the invention made a technical contribution and was not therefore excluded from patentability as a program for a computer as such. He remitted the application back to the examiner for consideration of the clarity of the claims. |
| O/241/19 | GB1514871.1 | Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology | Mr H Jones | 09 May 2019 | Refused | The application is concerned with identifying potential primers from large scale genomic or other DNA sequence dataset, subject to specific input criteria. A computer program allows both the initial primer generation and the additional criteria to be tested and incorporated into the designed primers at the same time, such that the primer set generated includes all the limitations normally designed at separate steps. Additionally, the method can be performed efficiently over a large amount of sequence data, such that it can identify all potential primer pairs for that dataset. The hearing officer found that the search and filtering process carried out by the computer was not technical in nature and refused the application. |
| O/180/19 | GB1815310.6 | Gelliner Limited | Mr B Buchanan | 04 April 2019 | Refused | The invention relates to simplifying bill payment e.g. at a restaurant, particularly when splitting the bill, by making a bill computer-readable and facilitating payment of portions of the bill separately. The central concept involves analysing a textual representation of a bill from a POS device and augmenting the file to include data representing a non-textual representation (e.g. a 2D matrix barcode or QR code) of merchant and billing data, including itemisation data, which is then sent to an output device e.g. for display on a screen. Using a computing device which may be a mobile phone with a scanner (e.g. a camera), a customer scans the output to detect the non-textual representation and decodes it. The computing device then displays the decoded bill information to the customer. The customer may initiate payment of a portion of the bill by requesting initiation of payment via a server. Splitting the bill among more than one customer, without transacting directly with a POS, is therefore facilitated. The Hearing Officer followed the four-step test set out in Aerotel and applied the AT&T signposts as reformulated in HTC. He concluded that the contribution did not provide the required technical contribution and related solely to a program for a computer and a method for doing business as such. The application was refused. |
| O/179/19 | GB1414511.4 | Gelliner Limited | Mr B Buchanan | 04 April 2019 | Refused | The invention relates to paying a bill e.g. for a meal at a restaurant by making a bill computer-readable and avoiding the need to transact directly with a Point of Sale (POS) device. The central concept involves analysing a textual representation of a bill from a POS device and augmenting the file to include data representing a non-textual representation (e.g. a 2D matrix barcode or QR code) of some data which is then sent to an output device e.g. for display on a screen. Using a computing device which may be a mobile phone with a scanner (e.g. a camera), a customer scans the output to detect the non-textual representation and decodes it. The computing device then displays the decoded bill information to the user. The user may initiate payment of the bill without having to wait for the POS to become available. Stated advantages of the invention include simplifying bill payment; facilitating splitting the bill and/or partial payment; and avoiding the need for sending payment data direct to the POS device. The Hearing Officer followed the four-step test set out in Aerotel and applied the AT&T signposts as reformulated in HTC. He concluded that the contribution did not provide the required technical contribution and related solely to a program for a computer and a method for doing business as such. The application was refused. |
| O/164/19 | GB1312503.4 | ABB Inc. | Miss J Pullen | 28 March 2019 | Refused | The invention relates to analysing control loops in a process control system, such as may be used to maintain variables (e.g. pressure, temperature, current) at required levels within an industrial process. A control loop may comprise a controller, a measurement device (or sensor) and a final control element (e.g. a valve). A problem may arise with any of those elements in any one of potentially hundreds of control loops within an industrial process, and, particularly when a problem in one control loop adversely affects others, it can be difficult to diagnose the problem. The invention provides a graphical user interface (GUI), which presents two data sets on a single view to assist an engineer in diagnosing problems within any of the control loops. The invention goes on to allow data to be updated by the user and displayed. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan four step test, considered the AT&T/CVON signposts and found that the contribution fell within the excluded categories of presentation of information and a computer program as such. The application was refused under S18(3). |
| O/148/19 | GB1115638.7 | Fisher-Rosemount Systems Inc | Mr B Buchanan | 22 March 2019 | Allowed | The present invention relates to process control systems, and specifically to managing process control search results by enabling a user to search for a control parameter within a process control system, and dynamically displaying relevant up to date runtime data associated with the parameter. The Hearing Officer followed the four step Aerotel test to determine whether there was a technical contribution. He applied the AT&T signposts as modified in HTC. The contribution was identified to include automatically updating and displaying runtime data in order to enable an operator to better control the system. Signpost (i) was found to be met on the basis that the contribution enabled giving visual indications automatically about the conditions prevailing in an apparatus or system. A further argument that signposts (ii) - (iv) were also satisfied because of the way the computer operated was rejected. The application was found to meet the requirements of section 1(2)(c) and was remitted to the Examiner for examination of the latest claims. Because the main request was found to be allowed under section 1(2), auxiliary requests were not considered. |
| O/129/19 | GB1212805.4, GB1815543.2 | International Business Machines Corporation | Mr B Micklewright | 08 March 2019 | Refused | In these parent and divisional applications the inventions related to methods of indexing documents involving a document structure whereby indexing information is stored in an area of a page of the document which is ignored by typical applications processing the document. The hearing officer, following the Aerotel approach and considering the AT&T signposts, decided that the inventions were excluded from patentability as a program for a computer as such. He therefore refused the applications. |
| O/128/19 | GB1308715.0 | Arris Enterprises, Inc | Mrs S E Chalmers | 07 March 2019 | Allowed | The application relates to a user interface used for controlling a thermostat. A set of controllable attributes including heating set point and cooling set point are displayed. The controllable attributes are placed in a particular order based on a detected increase or decrease in ambient temperature. The Hearing Officer applied the four-step approach set out in Aerotel/Macrossan and also considered the decision in Gemstar and found the contribution made by the invention to be more than the presentation of information or a program for a computer as such. The application has been remitted to the examiner so that it can be forwarded to grant. |
| O/117/19 | GB1801081.9, GB1804424.8, GB1808466.5 | Corethree Ltd | Mr P Mason | 28 February 2019 | Refused | The applications were further divisional applications of a parent application that had been refused at an earlier hearing. The applications relate to the provision of electronic tickets presented to a user on a mobile computing device or smart phone. The tickets comprise a digital watermark that is animated to signify information to the user. The Hearing Officer applied the four-step test set out in the Court of Appeal judgment in Aerotel/Macrossan. He decided that the alleged contribution made by the invention is not technical in nature. He found that the contribution falls solely within excluded subject matter as no more than a program for a computer as such, a method for doing business as such and a presentation of information as such. The Hearing Officer also found that amended claims submitted contained added subject matter. The applications were refused under section 18(3). |
| O/094/19 | GB1506976.8 | Encompass Corporation Pty Ltd | Mr P Thorpe | 18 February 2019 | Refused | The invention in issue relates to a computer implemented method of managing corporate data and in particular to updating a network representation of the corporate data based on updated reports. By updating the representation on the basis only of the reports that have been updated the invention is claimed to be more efficient and quicker than prior art methods that regenerated the whole representation when any of the underlying reports had been updated. The Hearing Officer accepted that the invention may be an improvement on prior art systems but that it did not provide the required technical contribution. The application was therefore refused as it related to a computer progam and a method of doing business. |
| O/087/19 | GB1620396.0 | Walmart Apollo, LLC | Mrs C L Davies | 14 February 2019 | Refused | The invention relates to a method and system to support order collection using a geo-fence. The electronic device places an order for goods through the computer network and selects an intended collection location and time where and when the goods may be picked up. The device forms a geo-fence around or near the collection location, and monitors the geo-fence. The geo-fence is created but is left initially in a dormant state, for example, inactivated. The customer device is configured to set or generate a wake up alarm. The wake up alarm is configured to activate relevant geo-fence functions on the customer device at a pre-determined period prior to the indicated pick up time. When activated the geo-fence is triggered when the device is proximate to the collection location, and the device then generates a trigger message. The computer network stores the order in a database, and in response to receiving the trigger message, generates a pre-alert message. An in-store device, in response to receiving the pre-alert message and the order details, displays the order details or otherwise outputs a pre-alert notification. This method allows a store or shop employee to ready the order as the customer approaches the collection location but before the customer arrives. This is aimed to reduce any delay to the customer. Further actively monitoring a geo-fence may cause a relatively high workload within the customer device and in consequence may drain battery life significantly. Therefore, minimizing the period when the geo-fence is active helps to preserve battery life within the customer device. On applying the Aerotel/Macrossan test, the Hearing Officer found that the invention claimed was excluded as a computer program as such and a business method as such. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/079/19 | GB1602260.0 | Bizagi Group Ltd | Mr P Mason | 11 February 2019 | Refused | The application is concerned with a computer implemented method of designing a workflow for workflow management software for use in businesses and organisations such as insurance, banking or in a hospital. Complex workflows can be enforced without relying on predefining every possible step of the process using a stakeholder-centric approach. Actions are not linked together but rather workflows emerge from suitable definitions of the actions, data and rules governing when the actions and data are available to the stakeholders permitted to run them. The Hearing Officer applied the four-step test set out in the Court of Appeal judgment in Aerotel and considered in particular the fourth AT&T signpost. He decided that the alleged contribution made by the invention is not technical in nature. He found that the contribution falls solely within excluded subject matter as no more than a program for a computer and a method for doing business as such. The application was refused. |
| O/042/19 | GB1420108.1 | International Business Machines Corporation | Mr S Brown | 22 January 2019 | Refused | The application provides a way of detecting the unauthorised bulk transfer of emails from a first network to a second network. It does this by determining an arrival rate for internal emails into one or more accounts within the first network and then undertaking a further determination of emails being sent to an external network. By comparing the arrival and sending rates it is able to identify if mail is being bulk forwarded. The Hearing Officer applied the reasoning in Aerotel/Macrossan and considered the AT&T/Cvon signposts as modified by HTC v Apple and found that the contribution lay entirely in matter excluded as a program for a computer as such. He also considered the guidance in Merrill Lynch and Halliburton and decided that it was also excluded as a method of doing business. |
| O/029/19 | GB1116031.4 | General Electric Company | Mrs S E Chalmers | 16 January 2019 | Allowed | The invention relates to evaluating the operation of a generator using a computer by obtaining diagnostic data from one or more sensors in the generator, determining whether an anomaly exists using a knowledge base and if so providing a fault code to a user indicating the nature of an error that caused the anomaly. The Hearing Officer applied the four-step approach set out in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the AT&T and HTC judgments but was unable to identify an actual contribution in view of prior art identified by the examiner. The alleged contribution of the invention was considered and found to be more than a program for a computer as such. The application has been remitted back to the examiner for further substantive examination. |
| O/823/18 | GB1518591.1 | Lenovo (Singapore) PTE. LTD | Mr S Brown | 20 December 2018 | Refused | The application relates to the auto-correction of text using contextual data derived from one or more sensor and clock inputs. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and considered the signposts laid out in HTC v Apple and decided that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter. The application was refused as no more than a program for a computer as such. |
| O/809/18 | GB1404925.8 | Hitachi, Ltd. | Mr H Jones | 14 December 2018 | Allowed | The application relates to computer-implemented method for managing a construction site whereby measurement data corresponding to a real-time three-dimensional representation of a construction site is acquired using a measuring device, such as a laser scanner. The measurement data corresponds to completed and partially completed constructions, as well as associated scaffolding, tools and non-installed items that may be deposited around the construction site. This measurement data is compared with design data, corresponding to a model of the construction, in order to extract non-design data from the measurement data which corresponds to the scaffolding, tools and non-installed items which are present in the construction site during the construction process. In this manner, it is possible to identify non-design items that are present in the construction filed but that are not part of the design data. The Hearing Officer dismissed the applicant’s suggestion that any invention relating to the management of a construction site is inherently technical but did agree that, in this particular case, a system of alerting the user to congestion on a construction site and prompting the user to take remedial action did provide a technical contribution. The Patent Court’s judgment in PKTWO was referred. The Hearing Officer remitted the application to the examiner for further examination. |
| O/800/18 | GB1609164.7 | Motorola Solutions Inc. | Mr P Thorpe | 13 December 2018 | Refused | The invention concerned the pursuit of fugitives. More specifically, it related to a computer implemented method of analysing various input data to predict the likely route of the fugitive and then outputting directions to direct pursuit assets, such as the police to capture the fugitive. The Hearing Officer found the invention to be excluded as a computer program and as a method of doing business and therefore refused the application. |
| O/787/18 | GB1113568.8 | Fisher-Rosemount Systems, Inc. | Mrs S E Chalmers | 11 December 2018 | Refused | The invention relates to a scheme to display localized process control objects within a process control system with language phrases and/or data formats associated with the locale in which the system is operating and, in auxiliary claims, the screen size of a requesting device type. The contribution was identified to be a method to display localized process control objects within a process control system using a device description file which includes a tag referencing localized information within a locale template to access and display process control information. The Hearing Officer applied the four step approach set out in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the judgments in Symbian, AT&T and HTC amongst others and found that the invention was excluded as a program for a computer as such. The application was refused. |
| O/770/18 | GB1323148.5 | Stoneware, Inc. | Mr H Jones | 30 November 2018 | Refused | The application relates to computer-implemented method for the provision of services such as software applications to a receiving device, where consideration is given for the capabilities and configuration of the receiving device when determining the content and delivery method of the services. In accordance with the four-step set out in the Court of Appeal judgment in Aerotel, the Hearing Officer found that the contribution involved an assessment of the hardware components and conditions within an end-user device and selecting the most appropriate option of software service selected by the user. The invention did not solve a technical problem within the end-user device. He found that this fell solely within excluded categories of business method and computer program. The application was refused. |
| O/758/18 | GB1808397.2 | Blackhawk Network, Inc. et al | Miss J Pullen | 27 November 2018 | Refused | The claims relate to conducting transactions using transaction card package assemblies, which comprise a card holder containing one or more transaction cards and a sample product. The transaction cards may be credit or debit cards, gift cards, prepaid cards, membership or loyalty cards, etc and are typically activated at a point of sale terminal. The sample may be an actual product or a coupon, which may be exchanged for a product or a service, and is distributed free of charge, packaged along with the transaction card. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan four step test, considered the reformulated AT&T/CVON signposts and found that the contribution fell within the excluded category of a method for doing business and a computer program as such. The application was refused under S18(3). |
| O/748/18 | GB1120938.4 | Suunto OY | Mr P Mason | 23 November 2018 | Allowed | The application relates to improving the adaptability of wristop computers i.e. portable microcontroller-operated computer devices adapted for attachment to a user’s wrist. In the invention the wristop computer obtains physical data such as velocity, position or a physiological variable. Users may define a mathematical formula by selecting different mathematical operators with different physical variables and arranging them how they wish. An interpreter in the device converts the mathematical formula into computer-readable instructions. The instructions can be read by the device to perform the mathematical function using the physical variable. The new result is then communicated to the user. In this way information available to a user can be configured by the user after purchase of the device according to their own requirements. The Hearing Officer found that the invention was both novel and involved an inventive step in light of four documents cited by the examiner. Further, the Hearing Officer found the contribution made by the invention to be limited to the narrow field of wristop computers and to include a technical effect that takes the contribution outside the excluded field of a computer program as such. The application was remitted to the examiner. |
| O/741/18 | GB1601064.7 | Virtual Reading Gym (PTY) Ltd | Mrs C L Davies | 20 November 2018 | Refused | The invention relates to a method and to a system which provide for progressive teaching of improved reading skills to a learner. A learner is presented with a written passage on the monitor. A learning process involves having the learner read the passage and recording words that the learner pronounces incorrectly or cannot pronounce as error words. Corrective feedback is provided to the learner which may optionally include an audible correct pronunciation of the error words and/or, optionally, include a definition of the error words. The plurality of error words is correlated to a set of similar or associated words in a database to provide a set of related training words. Training is also provided with respect to error words and training words. On applying the Aerotel/Macrossan test, the Hearing Officer found that the invention claimed was excluded as a computer program as such. The Hearing Officer found that the amended claims had removed the added matter. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/670/18 | GB1210896.5 | General Electric Company | Mr H Jones | 22 October 2018 | Refused | The application relates to analysing electrical generation data, in particular electrical microgeneration data. Local electricity produced by a non-utility microgeneration device, such as a solar panel(s) or a diesel turbine generator, is connected to an electrical grid and can offset the electricity consumed by the microgenerating user. Any excess electric power may be used by other customers of the electric grid. The invention lies in collecting electrical generation data and time usage data for the microgeneration device, and then identifying times that the microgeneration device outputs power to the grid. The notification may relate to an offer or incentive to the user to increase electricity supply to or reduce consumption from the grid. The Hearing Officer found that the contribution fell within the excluded category of computer program and refused the application. There was therefore no need to consider the separate objection to business method. |
| O/621/18 | GB1212468.1 | Intuit Inc. | Mr P Thorpe | 04 October 2018 | Refused | The invention is concerned with producing linguistically correct computer generated text. More specifically it seeks to ensure that the text in languages that have genders accurately reflects the gender of any nouns used in a particular sentence. Applying the four step Aerotel test the Hearing Officer found that the invention did not provide a technical contribution and was therefore excluded as a program for a computer. The application was refused. |
| O/569/18 | GB1421455.5 | Lenovo (Singapore) Pte. Ltd | Dr J E Porter | 12 September 2018 | Refused | The application concerned calendar or other similar organisational applications for computing devices. The invention provided a method and system for prioritising items to be presented to a device user, taking into account “contextual data” such as the user’s search history, purchase history, current and past locations, and people the user had communicated with. The hearing officer followed the Aerotel steps to determine whether the invention was excluded from patentability. He concluded that the contribution made by the invention was a method for determining what is of interest or trending for a user of an information handling device at a particular time and at a particular location, which may be used to intelligently organise upcoming items for action accordingly. Using the AT&T signposts, he concluded that this was no more than a computer program. The software built up and used a contextualised user profile, by choosing to determine and record certain data, in particular circumstances or in a particular order. The components or means actuated or addressed by the software were being used in a technically conventional way. At best, the software caused components or means of the device to be actuated or addressed in a different sequence from prior devices. This did not lead in itself to a technical improvement through the computer running in a new way; nor was it an improvement being made at an architectural level, or irrespective of the particular software. The signposts pointed away from any technical contribution. The contribution was also a method for doing business. It was purely an administrative or organisational task involving assimilating and reviewing information and data, making judgments about what was of interest or importance for a device user, and organising actions or other items on the basis of these judgments. The application was refused. |
| O/518/18 | GB1713249.9 | Motoko Hazama | Miss J Pullen | 22 August 2018 | Refused | The application relates to methods of calculating potential energy in substances and light, of creating timeless condition, and of creating reverse time. There are five claims which respectively define a method of calculating potential energy in substances, a method of calculating potential energy in light, a method of creating timeless condition, a method of creating reverse time for substances and a method of creating reverse time for light. In each claim there then follows an equation which is said to show the method and a definition of the variables. The examiner objected that the claimed invention relates to a mathematical method and also that it is not capable of industrial application. The applicant requested a decision on the papers. The Hearing Officer found the claimed invention to be excluded under section 1(2)(a) as it relates to a scientific theory or mathematical method and that the invention is not capable of industrial application as required by section 1(1)(c). No saving amendments could be identified. The application was refused. |
| O/509/18 | GB1410082.0 | Globoforce Limited | Mrs S E Chalmers | 16 August 2018 | Refused | The invention relates to a system and method for collating and displaying personnel recognition data within an organisation; more particularly systems and methods for analysing and displaying recognition data along with company organisational data to generate a recognition graph for employees. The Hearing Officer applied the four step approach set out in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the Symbian, AT&T and HTC judgments and the Lantana decision, and found that the invention was excluded as a program for a computer as such. The Hearing Officer referred to Aerotel and Lantana and found that the invention was excluded as a method for doing business as such implemented by a computer program. The invention was also found to relate to the presentation of information as such. The application was refused. |
| O/494/18 | GB1621211.0 | Google LLC | Dr L Cullen | 09 August 2018 | Refused | The application relates to a method of providing users of mobile devices such as smartphones, tablets and the like with information in areas with limited or non-existent access to wireless networks. Analysis is carried out to identify content which two or more users have previously viewed at a specific location and when an indication is received that another user may be travelling to the same location, e.g. through positioning data or navigation requests from the user’s device, the previously identified content is transmitted to the other user. The location-specific information can then be temporarily stored on the user’s phone so that it can be accessed if the user arrives at the location without the need to connect to a network. The hearing officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan four step test and found that the invention as claimed was excluded as being a program for a computer. The signposts set out in AT&T, as modified in HTC v Apple, were subsequently considered to determine whether the computer program nevertheless made a contribution that was technical. The applicant argued that the contribution acted to solve the problem of providing users with required information at a location, but the hearing officer held that the problem being addressed was one of poor network reception at a location and that the contribution acted to circumvent rather than solve this problem because information about the location was loaded on the device prior to arriving at the location. The application was refused under section 18(3) of the Act. |
| O/479/18 | GB1502999.4 | Khalil Arafat | Mr H Jones | 02 August 2018 | Allowed | The invention relates to a system for verifying the authenticity of printed sheet material and comprises an arrangement of scanners, printers and a central database in communication with each other. Invisible markings on sheet material can be linked in the database to a security marking provided on packaging material around the sheet products. A user of sheet material can register itself as the authorised registrant of the sheet material within the central database, for example when printing onto it, and other parties with access to a further scanner connected to the database can verify the provenance of the sheet material. The hearing officer found that the apparatus involved an inventive step over the prior art and that it did not relate to a business method. The application was remitted to the examiner. |
| O/340/18 | GB1309217.6 | BARBARA CROSSLEY | Mr B Micklewright | 06 June 2018 | Refused | The invention related to a single-purpose violet coloured signalling light for a road vehicle to indicate an intention to pass or overtake another vehicle, thus enabling road users to distinguish an overtaking event from a turning event. The hearing officer concluded that the invention lacked an inventive step and was also excluded from patentability as relating to the presentation of information as such. He therefore refused the application. |
| O/325/18 | GB1506763.0 | CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA | Mr P Mason | 24 May 2018 | Refused | The invention is in the field of data storage for web applications. In particular, a computer program (method) to manage a local storage capacity of a processing terminal to ascertain if a website content and/or page can be viewed by a user when browsing, and facilitating the deletion of data from local storage by evaluating free storage capacity with respect to new data to be viewed and extracting and displaying, to the user in an identifiable manner, candidate data to be deleted, which is then deleted on the user’s instruction. This allows the user to continue to view the website content i.e. data stored as cached data when the website is disconnected from a network and/or is offline. The Hearing Officer applied the four step test set out in Aerotel/Macrossan and considered the AT&T signposts. He concluded that there was no relevant technical contribution to save the invention from being more than a program for a computer as such, and that the invention therefore related solely to subject matter excluded from being patented. Accordingly he refused the application. |
| O/298/18 | GB1306615.4 | Barclays Bank PLC | Mr S Brown | 16 May 2018 | Refused | The application relates to a mobile payment system and methods for providing, validating, authorizing, activating and using a mobile payment account on a portable electronic device to enable efficient and secured contactless payment at an electronic point of sale. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and considered the signposts laid out in HTC v Apple and decided that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter. The application was refused as no more than a method for doing business and a program for a computer as such. |
| O/283/18 | GB13025451.6 | Emerson Process Management Power and Water Solutions Inc | Mrs S E Chalmers | 10 May 2018 | Refused | The invention relates to a computer simulation of the flows and pressures between various nodes of a process network such as those used in a power generation plant. The process network has junction nodes and non-junction nodes, in which values of flow characteristics are calculated by first solving simultaneously for the junction nodes and then solving sequentially for the non-junction nodes Prior to the hearing, the applicant filed a main set of claims and five sets of auxiliary claims. In response, the Hearing Officer expressed the view that consideration of six claim sets was not an effective use of the Tribunal’s time and the matter was taken as a preliminary issue at the hearing. Noting the judgment in Nokia GmbH v IPCom GmbH [2012] EWHC 225 (Pat) where the judge explicitly warned against the presentation of “a smorgasbord of alternative monopolies”, she decided that considering multiple sets of claims would not be a good use of the Tribunal’s resources and there was no onus on her to do so. She therefore limited the applicant to two sets of auxiliary claims. The Hearing Officer applied the four step approach set out in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the Symbian, AT&T and HTC judgments and the Vicom decision, and found that the invention was excluded as a program for a computer as such. The application was refused. |
| O/232/18 | GB1122241.1 | Avaya Inc. | Mr B Micklewright | 12 April 2018 | Refused | The invention related to a message delivery system where member configuration data with a prioritised message list is used to deliver audio messages to recipient client devices. A selection of messages is delivered to a recipient based upon criteria designated by the sender and the recipient so that a limited number of the most important messages can be received on a prioritised basis. The hearing officer held that the invention did not make a technical contribution and lay solely in the excluded fields of a program for a computer as such and a method of doing business as such. He therefore refused the application. |
| O/209/18 | GB1210743.9 | Vetana Medical Systems | Dr J E Porter | 03 April 2018 | Refused | The application concerned an improved virtual microscope for viewing virtual slides (digitally scanned tissue sample slides). A pathologist views the virtual slides in order to carry out a medical diagnosis. The invention allows the pathologist to view virtual slides more efficiently and reliably. All the virtual slides from a particular subject are displayed in a first region of the interface at a low magnification. A second region displays one of the slides shown in the first region at a second, higher magnification, and a third region provides the same image at an intermediate magnification. A visual guide in the first region indicates the part of the slide image being shown at the higher magnification in the second region. The user can choose to view any area of interest from any of the slides shown in the first region, at a higher magnification level in the second and third regions. The hearing officer followed the Aerotel steps to determine whether the invention was excluded from patentability. He concluded that the contribution made by the invention was an improved way of displaying virtual slides in a virtual microscope. It did not go so far as to encompass an improved diagnostic method or technique carried out by the pathologist. This was no more than the presentation of information. It did not matter whether the contribution was termed with reference to a better display of virtual slides or to a better virtual microscope. There was no “real world technical achievement outside the information itself”, in the sense seen (for example) in the way that the third Gemstar patent involved a better electronic guide with a function having the physical effect of moving data between storage means. To the extent that the contribution was a "better user interface", he noted that in Gemstar the court rejected the argument that providing a better or new user interface delivers a technical effect. He considered that the contribution did not solve a technical problem and that the AT&T/CVON signposts did not point towards the contribution being “technical in nature”. To the extent that the improved display and arrangement of virtual slides was an effect which is external to the computer, it was an effect which lay wholly within the excluded area of presentation of information. The application was refused. |
| O/206/18 | GB1403069.6, GB1701773.2 | Corethree Ltd | Mrs C L Davies | 29 March 2018 | Refused | The application relates to a platform for the delivery of digital tickets to networked connected computing devices, such as smartphones. On applying the Aerotel/Macrossan test, the Hearing Officer found that the invention claimed was excluded as a business method as such, a computer program as such, and a presentation of information as such. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/199/18 | GB1513016.4 | Adobe Systems Incorporated | Dr J Houlihan | 28 March 2018 | Refused | The invention relates to a method for creating a unified user profile drawing data from two different computer networks, such as social media networks. Data from a target network B is pre-processed in advance of receiving a target user query to generate a set of clusters. Upon receipt of a user query relating to an online user profile on a network A, the clusters on network B are segmented based upon a profile feature. A set of candidate user profiles are used to identify a “match candidate” on network B. A unified user profile is then generated that includes features from the user profile on network A and the single match candidate profile on network B. Applying the Aerotel test and the AT&T signposts, as modified in HTC Europe CO Ltd v Apple Inc [2013] EWCA Civ 451, the hearing officer held that the claimed invention related to a computer program, as such, and consisted entirely of excluded matter. He was of the view that it did not relate wholly to a method of doing business. The applicant made submissions after the hearing in relation to Re. Landmark Graphics Corporation (BLO/112/18), published after the hearing. In that case, the hearing officer had said, in effect, in line with Re. Macrossan v Comptroller-General of Patents [2006] EWHC 705 (ch) that where an applicant makes a reasonable case and that there is reasonable doubt that an invention is not patentable the applicant should be given the benefit of the doubt. In the instant case the hearing officer said he had no doubt that the invention was not patentable. The application was refused. |
| O/194/18 | GB1421397.9 | Lenovo (singapore) Pte. Ltd | Mr H Jones | 27 March 2018 | Refused | The invention relates to a device that collects ephemeral data, such as location data, environmental data, etc., and records this data in association with object events, such as the creation or accessing of an object, to represent the context associated with the object event. A user can subsequently search for a file based on where they were when a document was created, or who the document was shared with during a meeting, or the temperature of the room when they accessed the document. In following the Aerotel test for excluded matter, the Hearing Officer found that the contribution fell solely within the meaning of a computer program as such. The application was refused. |
| O/155/18 | GB1618564.7 | Landmark Graphics Corporation | Mr H Jones | 12 March 2018 | Allowed | The invention relates to a computer-implemented method for integrating external algorithms into a flexible framework for visualising petroleum reservoir data. The Hearing Officer heard arguments from the applicant on the standard of proof required by examiners in objecting to inventions relating to excluded subject-matter, on how the Office approach to assessing technical contribution as required by Aerotel may be inconsistent with the Courts and on how the inventions were similar to the invention set out in Vicom and Halliburton which had been found to be patentable. The Hearing Officer found that the invention was not excluded under section 1(2) and remitted the application back to the examiner to conclude examination. |
| O/154/18 | GB1616731.4 | Landmark Graphics Corporation | Mr H Jones | 09 March 2018 | Allowed | The invention relates to a computer-implemented method for prospecting, drilling or developing an oilfield by forecasting production data, although the Hearing Officer construed it in substance as a method for forecasting production data. The Hearing Officer heard arguments from the applicant on the standard of proof required by examiners in objecting to inventions relating to excluded subject-matter, on how the Office approach to assessing technical contribution as required by Aerotel may be inconsistent with the Courts and on how the inventions were similar to the invention set out in Vicom and Halliburton which had been found to be patentable. The Hearing Officer found that the invention was not excluded under section 1(2) and remitted the application back to the examiner to conclude examination. |
| O/148/18 | GB1601420.1 | Landmark Graphics Corporation | Mr H Jones | 08 March 2018 | Allowed | The invention relates to a computer-implemented method of working with models of subterranean geology, in particular to adjusting the grid cell size in a static earth model and using the modified earth model as an input to a flow simulator in hydrocarbon production monitoring and planning. The Hearing Officer heard arguments from the applicant on the standard of proof required by examiners in objecting to inventions relating to excluded subject-matter, on how the Office approach to assessing technical contribution as required by Aerotel may be inconsistent with the Courts and on how the inventions were similar to the invention set out in Vicom and Halliburton which had been found to be patentable. Amendments had been proposed to overcome a clarity objection. The Hearing Officer found that the invention as proposed to be amended was not excluded under section 1(2) and remitted the application back to the examiner to conclude examination, inviting the applicant to formally make the proposed amendments. |
| O/143/18 | GB1600340.5 | Landmark Graphics Corporation | Mr H Jones | 07 March 2018 | Allowed | The decision relates to one of sixteen applications from the same applicant. The invention relates to a computer-implemented method of working with models of subterranean geology, in particular to modifying a geocellular model using interpolation or simulation to populate with property values those cells or points that lack property values. The Hearing Officer heard arguments from the applicant on the standard of proof required by examiners in objecting to inventions relating to excluded subject-matter, on how the Office approach to assessing technical contribution as required by Aerotel may be inconsistent with the Courts and on how the inventions were similar to the invention set out in Vicom and Halliburton which had been found to be patentable. The Hearing Officer found that the invention was not excluded under section 1(2) and remitted the application back to the examiner to conclude examination. |
| O/140/18 | GB1600695.9 | Landmark Graphics Corporation | Mr H Jones | 07 March 2018 | Allowed | The decision relates to one of sixteen applications from the same applicant. The invention relates to a computer-implemented method of working with models of subterranean geology, in particular to updating a portion of a three-dimensional geocellular model that is identified as being affected by a change in a two-dimensional geological model to which the three-dimensional geocellular model corresponds. The Hearing Officer heard arguments from the applicant on the standard of proof required by examiners in objecting to inventions relating to excluded subject-matter, on how the Office approach to assessing technical contribution as required by Aerotel may be inconsistent with the Courts and on how the inventions were similar to the invention set out in Vicom and Halliburton which had been found to be patentable. The Hearing Officer found that the invention was not excluded under section 1(2) and remitted the application back to the examiner to conclude examination. |
| O/142/18 | GB1613009.8 | Greydog Ventures Ltd | Mr B Micklewright | 07 March 2018 | Refused | The application relates to a computer method for providing a price comparison / price matching service to a user whilst allowing the user to remain anonymous from retailers / service providers. This is achieved through use of a data matching platform remote and independent from retailers, which acts as a trusted intermediary. The data matching platform stores available offers and their corresponding matching rules as submitted by retailers / service providers. The method involves a user submitting an enquiry including and the data matching platform receiving in a secure environment user profile data associated with the user from a secure server. The profile data and matching rules are then compared in the secure environment to generate matches for the user. The profile data is secured at all times and shielded from the retailers / service providers. The invention is said to improve use of such a system as profile data is not shared. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan four step test and considered the reformulated AT&T/CVON signposts and found that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter as a business method and a computer program as such. The application was compared with Really Virtual Company Limited’s Application [2013] RPC3 which was refused by the Patents Court. The hearing officer therefore refused the application. |
| O/138/18 | GB1600691.8, GB1600693.4, GB1600697.5, GB1600698.3 | Landmark Graphics Corporation | Mr H Jones | 05 March 2018 | Allowed | The decision relates to a second group of four applications out of a total of sixteen from the same applicant. All four applications relate in general to computer-implemented methods of working with models of subterranean geology and for determining characteristics of that geology. The Hearing Officer heard arguments from the applicant on the standard of proof required by examiners in objecting to inventions relating to excluded subject-matter, on how the Office approach to assessing technical contribution as required by Aerotel may be inconsistent with the Courts and on how the inventions were similar to the invention set out in Vicom and Halliburton which had been found to be patentable. The Hearing Officer found that three of the inventions were not excluded and that the fourth as presently claimed was excluded as being a computer program as such. All four applications were remitted back to the examiner to conclude examination. |
| O/112/18 | GB1600694.2, GB1600696.7, GB1600702.3, GB1600703.1, GB1600704.9, GB1600705.6, GB1600706.4 | Landmark Graphics Corporation | Mr H Jones | 20 February 2018 | Allowed | The decision relates to a first group of seven applications out of a total of sixteen from the same applicant. All seven applications relate in general to computer-implemented methods of working with models of subterranean geology and for modifying or improving various aspects of the visual representation of subsurface formations. The Hearing Officer heard arguments from the applicant on the standard of proof required by examiners in objecting to inventions relating to excluded subject-matter, on how the Office approach to assessing technical contribution as required by Aerotel may be inconsistent with the Courts and on how the inventions were similar to the invention set out in Vicom and Halliburton which had been found to be patentable. The Hearing Officer found that all seven inventions were not excluded and remitted the applications back to the examiner to conclude examination. |
| O/113/18 | GB1309088.1 | Reward Technology Limited | Mr S Brown | 20 February 2018 | Refused | he application relates to the online registration of loyalty cards. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and considered the signposts laid out in HTC v Apple and decided that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter. The application was refused as no more than a method for doing business as such. The Hearing Officer also considered inventive step and, following the steps set out in Windsurfing (as restated in Pozzoli), concluded that the invention lacked an inventive step over the disclosure of US2012/0209688 A1. |
| O/107/18 | GB1311099.4, GB1418792.6 | Avaya Inc. | Mr P Mason | 16 February 2018 | Refused | The application relate to a method and system of providing updates to a customer communication system. In GB 1311099.4 the system receives a request from a customer, prepares the ordered update and returns it to the customer. In GB 1418792.6 the customer’s system receives the update and installs it. The Hearing officer applied the Aerotel test and in the case of GB 1311099.4 agreed with the applicant that it was not excluded as a business method. However, and in common with 1418792.6 the Hearing Officer found that upon consideration of the AT&T/Cvon signposts any contribution lay entirely within a computer program and was therefore excluded. In particular, the application was a program running in a computer system that allowed the user to specify services for an existing communications program running on a consumer’s server. As such the contribution was restricted to that program and does not result in the underlying system operating in a new way or more efficiently or effectively and was therefore excluded. |
| O/104/18 | GB1401780.0 | Avaya Inc. | Mr P Thorpe | 15 February 2018 | Refused | The invention relates to a conference management system and method for displaying a real-time record of conference events. The record includes a compressed discussion event between a number of participants. The compressed event can by expanded by the user to identify particular participants in the discussion. The Hearing Officer found the invention to be inventive, supported by the description and the amended application as a whole not to have added matter to the application as originally filed. The Hearing Officer however found the claimed invention to be excluded as a computer program as such. The application was refused. |
| O/097/18 | GB1112924.4 | Avaya Inc | Mr S Brown | 13 February 2018 | Refused | The application relates to the tagging of a media stream with user generated content. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and considered the signposts laid out in HTC v Apple and decided that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter. He also briefly considered the decision in Lantana. The application was refused as no more than a combination of a program for a computer and the presentation of information as such. |
| O/069/18 | GB1411459.9 | Quikserve Limited | Dr J Houlihan | 30 January 2018 | Refused | The invention is concerned with a method for ordering menu items for delivery to a station at a premises. The embodiments focus on a restaurant situation, in which a customer can order food and drinks via a mobile device, such as a smart phone. The order is sent over the internet to a web-based server or platform. The server/platform facilitates communication of the order to an Electronic Point-of-Sale (EPOS) system via an EPOS adapter, a communication protocol and a communication network from a plurality of communication networks which may be stored at the platform. The mobile device is able to identify which premises and station (table) the customer is at and is able to retrieve a menu applicable to that premises by the appropriate EPOS adapter. This enables the provision of menus or information across a range of premises rather than a direct communication between a mobile device and an EPOS system in a single premises. The hearing officer applied the ‘Aerotel test’ and analysed step 3 of that test against the AT&T signposts as modified in HTC Europe Co Ltd v Apple Inc [2013] EWCA Civ 451. He found the actual contribution relates to both a business method and a computer program. He refused the application as it did not comply with section 1(2)(c) of the Act. |
| O/657/17 | GB1606291.1 | Halliburton Energy Services, Inc | Mrs C L Davies | 20 December 2017 | Refused | The application relates to analysis of oil rig activity. Systems and methods of measurement and analysis of various types of data while drilling oil rigs is well known. Analysis and reporting of the data may be difficult and time consuming where the data may be fragmented across various sources, unstandardized, or contain errors. In addition it may be difficult to combine data from multiple wellsites, or between wellsites operated by different companies, due to differences in the way data is gathered and recorded. Data analysis is thus usually performed either entirely manually or with significant manual oversight. Claim 1 seeks to overcome such difficulties by providing a method for automatically identifying and diagnosing wellsite operation errors, failures and/or operation inefficiency. Claim 11 provides an information handling system for automatically identifying and diagnosing wellsite operation errors, failures and/or operation inefficiency. On applying the Aerotel/Macrossan test, the Hearing Officer found that the invention claimed was excluded as a computer program as such and also a business method, a mathematical method and the presentation of information, as such. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/650/17 | GB1216175.8 | Walmart Stores Inc | Mrs C L Davies | 19 December 2017 | Refused | The application relates to enhancing the security of a transaction between a mobile device such as a mobile phone and a point-of-sale (POS) system such as a cash register in a shop. On applying the Aerotel/Macrossan test, the Hearing Officer found that the invention claimed was excluded as a business method as such and as a computer program as such. The Hearing Officer also found that the amended claims had added subject-matter beyond that contained in the application as filed. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/599/17 | GB1405589.1 | James Anthony Powell | Mrs C L Davies | 28 November 2017 | Refused | The application relates to a debit card characterised by the derivation of the number it bears and by being restricted to utility bill payments. On applying the Aerotel/Macrossan test, the Hearing Officer found that the invention claimed was excluded as a mathematical method as such and as a business method as such. The Hearing Officer also found that the invention was obvious in light of cited prior art and common general knowledge and that the application did not disclose the invention clearly and completely enough to be performed by a person skilled in the art. The application was refused. |
| O/580/17 | GB1202345.3 | Xerox Corporation | Mr S Brown | 20 November 2017 | Refused | The application relates to a tactile user interface utilising a “virtual bridge” to populate a “virtual magnet” with text highlighted in a document being viewed. The virtual magnet allows queries to be performed without the need for either a physical or a virtual keyboard. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and considered the signposts laid out in HTC v Apple and decided that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter. He also briefly considered the decisions in Gemstar and Autonomy. The application was refused as no more than a program for a computer as such. |
| O/512/17 | GB1102439.5 | Avaya Inc | Dr J E Porter | 12 October 2017 | Refused | The invention is concerned with a method and system of monitoring work activities for bill completion. This could be used by anyone but is likely to be used by providers of professional services such as lawyers and accountants in order to get more information needed to complete a bill. The method uses a profile to determine a trusted relationship between the person that needs to be billed and a third party. It then finds the third party’s electronic address to request information about the person being billed and determines a subject identifier with certain actions. The information is used to generate part of a billing entry. The steps are undertaken by a virtual assistant module within a computer system. The hearing officer followed the steps set out in Aerotel in order to determine whether the invention was excluded from patentability. He concluded that the contribution made by the invention lay in an improved way of generating a billing entry by identifying a trusted relationship and searching internal and then external sources to find an electronic address used to contact the communication device of the third party, in order to obtain information generate part of a bill. He concluded that identifying a trusted third party, searching for their address to contact them to obtain information and generating part of a bill was a better way of conducting an administrative or organisational task, and was therefore a business method delivered through a computer program. He considered that the contribution did not solve a technical problem and that the AT&T/CVON signposts did not point towards the contribution being “technical in nature”. The application was refused. |
| O/464/17 | GB1106168.6 | Avaya Inc. | Mr H Jones | 27 September 2017 | Refused | The application relates to a software distribution architecture in which a software vendor provides a software store that is coordinated with the requirements of a software purchasing enterprise. The invention provides an enterprise-focused software marketplace instead of the traditional customer-market model, which means that users within an enterprise can only download software from the software store based on certain requirements of the enterprise, e.g. IT infrastructure, purchase approval process, account billing and licensing criteria. The user is presented with a subset of software from the store that are allowed to be downloaded into the enterprise. This avoids problems such as software incompatibility. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Symbian tests and concluded that the invention related to a computer implemented method for doing business and was excluded under section 1(2)(c) of the Act. The application was refused. |
| O/461/17 | GB1521897.7 | ProProcure Limited | Mr B Buchanan | 26 September 2017 | Refused | The application addresses problems associated with object-oriented programs being required to interrogate a relational database when they are not compatible with each other. The solution provided uses a Query Planner module within a data access layer to process a query string expressed as a Domain Model Request into one or more queries; the data access layer also includes an Object Relational Mapping processing module which executes the one or more queries against a database in a single transaction. This reduces redundant queries and hence optimises the processor resources necessary to return the query response. The Hearing Officer followed the four step test in Aerotel/Macrossan and found that the alleged contribution was implemented by a program for a computer. The Applicant argued that the alleged technical contribution of the invention satisfied AT&T signposts (ii) - (v), and that determination of whether the computer actually operated in a new way could not be properly established without a search of the prior art. The Hearing Officer considered the alleged new operation and corresponding contribution for each of AT&T signposts (ii) - (v) and found that the computer operates conventionally, running under the instruction of an allegedly new program. In so doing it may process data in a new way within the application layer, but it operates conventionally at the architectural level. The Hearing Officer found that there was no technical contribution and found the application to be excluded under section 1(2) as a program for a computer as such. |
| O/455/17 | GB1103056.6 | Fisher-Rosemount Systems, Inc. | Dr J E Porter | 21 September 2017 | Refused | The application relates to the operation of a graphical display/interface in a process control system for running a plant, such as a chemical plant. The operator monitors the operation of the plant using the graphical display, takes action as a result of data being provided, and provides programming updates to the distributed elements of the control system. The invention identifies a series of relationships between elements of the process control system - for example, between a heater and the pump which supplies it with material, or between the pump and a document setting out its safe operating parameters - and provides them to the process control system. The relationships are then associated with, and used to connect, graphical representations of the elements within the display, so that a user can select a graphic on their display and be directed between the related elements as required for navigation. The hearing officer followed the steps set out in Aerotel in order to determine whether the invention was excluded from patentability. He concluded that the contribution made by the invention was a method and system, within the graphical user interface of a process control system, for dynamically providing information which enables the linking of graphical representations of process entities with the graphical representations of related entities, so that a user may be navigated between entity representations within the graphical user interface. This was found to be no more than a program for a computer and the presentation of information. In particular, it was not an improvement at the operating or architectural level of the computer system. Two auxiliary requests were also considered. One included an additional feature of local caching of relevant data. The other explicitly included the final step of controlling the process plant. Neither was held to change the contribution being made by the invention, and so neither was allowable. |
| O/425/17 | GB1505288.9, GB1505308.5 | ABB Technology AG | Miss J Pullen | 11 September 2017 | Refused | The two applications relate to managing and configuring field devices in an automation installation. The functions and the data of these field devices is provided in information packets which can be displayed as input windows or dialogs which allow a user to integrate and configure the devices into a system. The problem that each addresses is that a lot of information is displayed to a user, and that information can become overwhelming leading the user to make errors. Both inventions implement a simplified information framework with the aim of reducing those errors, or making them less likely. Application ‘288 achieves this by grouping together input windows of the same device and for the same input context by a using common marking, whereas ‘308 achieves this by grouping together input windows of the same device and for the same input context and displaying them in a superordinate group window. The Hearing Officer followed the four step test in Aerotel/Macrossan, reviewed the AT&T signposts and found that the claimed inventions each related to a program for a computer as such and also to the presentation of information. No saving amendments could be identified and the applications were refused. |
| O/424/17 | GB1519439.2 | ABB Technology AG | Miss J Pullen | 11 September 2017 | Refused | The application relates to managing and configuring field devices in an automation installation, where the functions and the data of these field devices is provided in information packets and a user at a client device can integrate and configure the field devices into a system. The problem addressed is that the information packets are processed at a server device and so there is intensive interaction between the client and server which can result in a bottleneck in client/server communications. The Hearing Officer followed the four step test in Aerotel/Macrossan, reviewed the AT&T signposts (in particular signposts 4 and 5) and found that the claimed invention related to a program for a computer as such. No saving amendment could be identified and the application was refused. |
| O/420/17 | GB1313173.5 | Statoil Petroleum AS | Mr H Jones | 07 September 2017 | Refused | The invention relates to a method of predicting the response of an induction logging tool along an arbitrary trajectory in a 3D earth model. The degree of computation involved in predicting the response of the tool can be reduced significantly without too much sacrifice by confining computations to a limited domain of the geology model surrounding the logging tool. This is said in the application to provide for “real-time” predictive computation in a way that could not be possible with computations in a “full 3D inhomogeneous and anisotropic medium with a full 3D code based on Maxwell equations”. In construing the claims, the Hearing Officer found that the term “earth model” would be understood by the skilled person to mean a numerical representation of subsurface geology derived in part from geophysical measurements. He identified the contribution as being the faster prediction of induction tool response within the earth model, allowing the modelling to be done in real time. Despite reference to contemporaneous measurements taken from a bore hole, the hearing officer found that there was no disclosure in the application of modifying the initial earth model based on a comparison of these measurements with a predicted response of an induction tool. There was also no disclosure of using the predicted response to control a separate process. Having considered the earlier cases of Halliburton and Vicom, the hearing officer concluded that the contribution made by the invention fell within the categories of computer program and mathematical method and therefore the application was refused. |
| O/402/17 | GB1319727.2 | Appa Music Group UG | Mr H Jones | 25 August 2017 | Refused | The application relates to a system for providing multimedia content within an app and a rights management solution integrated therein. The system takes the form of an app for running on various electronic output devices such as a smartphone, a tablet computer, a television or a dedicated app album player. Music albums are downloaded within the app environment and can be played back on the output device. Music albums can contain not only music files but also related album cover information, picture and video files, lyrics, links to other relevant, and the app provides a user interface for viewing/interacting with this additional data. Music and video data that requires protecting from illegal distribution is downloaded to the output device in encrypted form and stored in an area of memory referred to as a “media safe”; unprotected data, such as social media content, metadata relating to the artist/album and links to external websites, is not encrypted and is stored in a separate area of memory or under a different directory structure. The output device transmits authentication data to a remote app album server and receives in return a decryption key that allows the protected data to be played back or viewed on the output device. The app allows music albums to be displayed as a “virtual CD rack” and allows the user to vary display settings such that albums are grouped together per artist or by a particular genre of music. Minor issues of clarity and added matter were either resolved in favour of the applicant or by agreeing that amendments should be made to overcome. On the question of inventive step, the hearing officer identified the difference between the inventive concept and the state of the art as being the association of music files with various metadata, which he considered would have been obvious to the skilled person. The contribution was found to fall wholly in the excluded category of a computer program. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/390/17 | GB1405236.9 | Accipiter Radar Technologies Inc. | Dr L Cullen | 17 August 2017 | Allowed | The application relates to a radar system capable of localizing airborne targets, such as birds, in three dimensions (latitude, longitude, and altitude, 3D) providing more accurate target altitude estimate and increased overall volume coverage, as compared to conventional two dimensional (2D) radars. The examiner considered that the application lacked novelty over the cited prior art. The hearing officer (HO) construed the latest set of claims on file and found that the application was not anticipated by the prior art. The current claims require the data to be organised and stored on-the-fly in dual form - temporally ordered and (in another distinct step) spatially ordered - in the track database and to generate real time reports from this structured data. The prior art does not spatial order data in this way. Applying the Aerotel/Macrossan four step test, the HO then went on to consider if the claimed invention fall solely in the field of excluded matter. The HO found that the contribution lay in a 3D radar system which provides information not available from prior systems in the operational timeframes of ‘live’ applications such as bird aircraft strike hazard (BASH) management. The system integrates the radar device and the specialised track database which receives and stores radar data in real-time in the specified dual form. It is able to generate historical statistical reports on-the-fly in the context of continuous monitoring and storage of data. Although the system involves the presentation of this information to its users, the contribution is not limited to this presentation but extends to the capture and generation of this information as a whole. Similarly, although the invention relies on a computer program for its realisation, the contribution made by the invention goes beyond this. . The application was remitted for completion of the examination process. |
| O/381/17 | GB1018608.8 | Agilent Technologies Inc, | Dr L Cullen | 11 August 2017 | Refused | The application relates to a method and device for analysing measurement data obtained from a plurality of measurements carried out on a fluidic sample which has been separated in a separation system. This data is experimental data obtained from the separation of a sample comprising multiple components, e.g., analysis of the production of a pharmaceutical product using liquid or gas chromatography. When comparing a plurality of measurements, signal features are clustered together from different measurement data sets to create feature clusters which relate to the same component. The criteria for identifying what signal features will be clustered together to form a feature cluster are set by the user. The signals in each data set may be matched with pre-known technical information, e.g. relating to the expected components in the sample. If there are signal features that are not identified, e.g. additional features are present in the measurement data or some signal features are absent, these can be subject to clustering to determine if they relate to the same component(s) or not. Such unidentified signal clusters would, for example, indicate the presence of impurities in some or all of the fluidic samples. The hearing officer (HO) considered the latest set of claims on file and found that while they comprised added matter in relation to the rules of clustering and what constituted a failure of same, there was basis for analysing unidentified peaks in a cluster determining unit and determining these clustered unidentified peaks to be suspicious. Taking account of this feature, the HO then went on to consider if the application fell solely within the area of excluded subject matter. The HO, applying the Aerotel/Macrossan four step test, found that while the application was not excluded as presentation of information, it was excluded as a mathematical method, and as a program for a computer. The application was refused under section 18(3) of the Act. |
| O/373/17 | GB1202590.4 | Lexisnexis | Mr P Mason | 08 August 2017 | Refused | The invention is a computer-implemented method for searching for and ranking documents according to their relevancy; where relevancy is determined by a mathematical process applied to each document found, to quantitatively assess the distribution therein of words which match the search criteria. The Hearing Officer applied the four step test set out in Aerotel/Macrossan and considered the AT&T signposts. He concluded that there was no relevant technical contribution to save the invention from being more than a program for a computer as such, and that the invention therefore related solely to subject matter excluded from being patented. Accordingly he refused the application. |
| O/364/17 | GB1609028.4 | Google inc. | Mr P Mason | 01 August 2017 | Refused | This decision concerns patent applications GB1423360.5 and GB1609028.4, both entitled “Adaptive clustering of locations”. It addresses the question of whether the invention set out in each application relates to subject matter excluded under Section 1(2) of the Patents Act 1977. Both applications relate to a computer-implemented methods of creating (for display) a dataset representing geographic regions which meet specified criteria, the geographic regions being defined in relation to the current location of a mobile device and being redefined to account for changes in the device’s location. The Hearing Officer applied the four step test set out in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the Symbian and Halliburton judgements and the AT&T signposts. He found the inventions as claimed re excluded under Section 1(2) because they relate solely to excluded matter, namely to computer programs as such. The applications were refused. |
| O/361/17 | GB1314647.7 | Jethro Bennett | Dr J E Porter | 31 July 2017 | Refused | The invention concerns branded eyewear in the form of “shutter glasses” where, in place of lenses, there are strut members which extend horizontally across the left and right orbital frames. The eyewear has oversized wings (or arms) providing space for branding to be applied, which may be colours, logos, patterns or typefaces which represent or are associated with a particular brand, team, event, company, character or sports personality. Specific branding options are claimed, including branding the eyewear with a sports player name in a font which substantially mimics the player name font on a team strip. The prior art shows unbranded shutter eyewear with oversized wings, as well as other various types of eyewear with differing branding and logos. The Hearing Officer considered that it would be apparent to the skilled person - a designer of advertising and promotional headwear - that some form of advertising or promotional branding or logo could be applied to the unbranded shutter eyewear just as it is applied to any other design of eyewear. The skilled person would also well understand that successful branding and promotional material needs to reflect and incorporate the colours, wording, logos and fonts associated with the brand, team, event or personality being promoted or advertised. The claimed invention lacked an inventive step. On excluded matter, the Hearing Officer followed Aerotel and assessed the contribution made by the invention as being the application of certain specific branding, logos, wording, fonts and colours to shutter eyewear - in particular, the application of a player’s name in a font mimicking the player name font on a team strip. The contribution was therefore a number of design and branding choices, influenced by (amongst other things) commercial and sporting considerations. It was not technical in nature, and was excluded as being an aesthetic creation and, to the extent the branding, logo or other wording may be said to impart information, as being the presentation of information. The application was refused. |
| O/349/17 | GB1116597.4 | Thoughtwire Holdings Corp | Mr A Bartlett | 24 July 2017 | Refused | The Application relates to a data sharing system providing an intermediary service for passing data between two or more software systems. The service uses semantic data and stores a copy of received data in a graph data structure which includes relationships between the data items. The service also stores semantic data requests, and when relevant updates to its stored data are detected, it will semantically resolve a request from the graph data structure and send the requested data to the address provided by the requesting software system. The applicant argued that the service was analogous to the special exchange in Aerotel and also argued that the third and fourth of the AT&T signposts indicated a technical effect. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan 4 step approach and found that the contribution made by the invention fell solely in subject matter excluded under section 1(2) as a program for a computer as such. As the Hearing Officer did not find any saving amendment, they refused the application. |
| O/344/17 | GB1213723.8 | Geodesixs inc | Mr A Bartlett | 20 July 2017 | Refused | The application relates to a computer system for electronic trading/auctions comprising multiple trader/bidder systems connected to a trading apparatus. The trading apparatus allows the traders/bidders to submit orders/bids having complex conditions attached. The complex conditions relate to information that is unknown to the trader/bidder at the time the order/bid is made and is only verifiable once all orders/bids have been made. The trading apparatus determines the results of the orders/bids by analysing different potential scenarios and selecting for completion those orders/bids which result in the best outcome. The provision for complex conditions is said to improve price and/or liquidity. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan 4 step test and found that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter as a business method and a computer program as such. The contribution was found to relate to a computer implemented trading system which was non-technical. The Hearing Officer did not agree with applicant’s arguments that the system comprised a new arrangement of hardware. |
| O/334/17 | GB1607337.1 | Ensign Advanced Systems Limited | Dr J E Porter | 17 July 2017 | Allowed | The invention concerns support systems for building services such as hot and cold water, gas, electricity, drainage and ventilation (“service paths”). It provides a computer-implemented process of designing support systems for such services. A layout of the services is inputted into the computer, and a design for the locations of supports along the service paths is created, according to predetermined rules for each type of service and support. A tolerance region around the location of each support is then determined according to predetermined rules for each type of service and support. A region of overlap between the tolerance regions is identified, and then the design is optimised by removing supports that give rise to the overlapping tolerance regions and adding a shared support that intersects the region of overlap. The examiner objected that the invention is no more than a computer program. The Hearing Officer followed Aerotel and assessed the contribution made by the invention as being a computer-implemented method of designing support systems for building services, involving the steps set out above. He noted that the process takes into account the required properties of the supports and the nature of the services, and that the tolerance regions themselves depend on physical characteristics of the supports, and the physical characteristics and requirements of the services. In the light of case-law, particularly Halliburton, he concluded that the method has a technical effect on the design of physical entities of a technical nature which are external to the computer. He rejected an approach taken by the examiner which focussed on whether the present invention was less technically complex than that in Halliburton, and disagreed with the objection that the contribution was merely an intellectual or administrative process. The application was remitted to the examiner. |
| O/297/17 | GB1207457.1 | Cadio INC | Mr B Buchanan | 12 July 2017 | Refused | The application related to obtaining a series of navigation directions and then, based at least in part on defined rules, providing a subset of those navigation directions as a summarised route. In this way travellers can be provided with accurate directions that are not overly complicated. The hearing officer found that the claimed invention related to a program for a computer as such and therefore refused the application. |
| O/299/17 | GB1114727.9 | Ford Global Technologies, LLC | Mr B Micklewright | 28 June 2017 | Refused | The application relates to an educational puzzle that aims to improve familiarity with the five vowels in the English language. An incomplete anagram is presented to the user as a set of scrambled letters which requires an additional vowel to be added before the anagram can be solved. To guide the user to select the correct additional vowel, a short story which contains the completed anagram accompanies the puzzle. In the main embodiment, the puzzle is presented in a booklet using temporarily attachable vowels and width shortened, removable pages on which to record the solution to the anagram. Applying the Aerotel test, the hearing officer concluded that the contribution fell solely within excluded matter as it related to the rules of playing the particular game. In addition, upon reviewing the application as a whole, the hearing officer concluded there were no possible amendments which could support a patentable claim, since any apparatus used to play the game was already known. The application was refused for failing to comply with section 1(2)(c). |
| O/298/17 | GB1203886.5 | Thomas Michael Anderson | Mr A Bartlett | 28 June 2017 | Refused | The application is concerned with a method for obtaining location data about a consumer (person) and the manner in which location information is determined from: the location data; a particular known location; and a history of locations associated with the consumer. The location data is repeatedly obtained following a time interval which is adjusted based on the proximity of the consumer to the known location and the history of locations. In effect, this results in the interval for obtaining location information being increased or decreased based on where the consumer is, within a context of their behaviour, and therefore either more or less accurate location information is determined. The Applicant argued that the contribution was a reduction in power consumption because location data was obtained less frequently. The Hearing Officer followed the four step test in Aerotel/Macrossan and found that the contribution was implemented by a program for a computer and did not constitute a method for doing business. The Hearing Officer confirmed that the AT&T signposts did not suggest that the invention provided a technical contribution and found the application to be excluded under section 1(2). |
| O/276/17 | GB1307847.2 , GB1700269.2 | Mr Martin Alexander Hay | Mrs C L Davies | 07 June 2017 | Refused | The parent application (GB1307847.2) relates to a method and apparatus for playing a game, and the divisional application (GB1700269.2) relates to left- and right-handed money. On applying the Aerotel/Macrossan test, the Hearing Officer found that the claims of the parent application were excluded as a method for playing a game as such, and that claim 1 of the divisional application was excluded as a method for doing business as such. In the case of each application, it was found that there was no technical contribution. Both applications were refused. |
| O/268/17 | GB1307841.5 | Barclays Bank plc | Mr H Jones | 05 June 2017 | Refused | The application relates to a method of ensuring that a purchase is delivered to an authorised recipient. The purchase is authorised using a digital wallet, which designates an authorised recipient. A delivery token is sent to the authorised recipient and a corresponding token is sent to the delivery device. At the point of delivery, the recipient of the delivery provides the first token and the delivery device provides the second. If the two match, then the delivery is authorised. On the basis of what was already known, the hearing officer found the contribution to lie in the storage of a different type of transactional information, i.e. the delivery token, in a purchaser’s digital wallet, and then the use of this delivery token to allow authentication of the purchaser at delivery. The Hearing Officer found that the contribution fell within the excluded category of a method for doing business and refused the application under section 18(3). |
| O/260/17 | GB1116796.2 | Christopher Curtis | Mr B Micklewright | 01 June 2017 | Refused | The invention related to a board game in which a plurality of game pieces are moved over a plurality of marked spaces arranged in a grid on a two-dimensional board. The game pieces have different geometrical shapes which move in different ways on the board depending on the number of vertices associated with each individual piece. The hearing officer found that the invention was excluded from patentability as a scheme, rule or method of playing a game as such and therefore refused the application. |
| O/259/17 | GB1411984.6 | Palantir Technologies, Inc | Mr P Mason | 01 June 2017 | Refused | The invention of GB1411984.6 relates to a computer program presenting a user with an interface so that they can search for possible duplicate data objects in a database by selecting from presented search criteria. If the user decides that a pair of objects found by the search are duplicates, they can choose to create a new merged object that combines data from the pair. This new object is added to the database and the original pair of objects are deleted from the database. Thus the invention is a tool for a user to check the quality of data in a database and resolve potential problems with the data. The Hearing Officer applied the four step test set out in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the Symbian and Halliburton judgements and the AT&T signposts. He found the inventions as claimed re excluded under Section 1(2) because they relate solely to excluded matter, namely to computer programs as such. The applications were refused. |
| O/255/17 | GB1204971.4 | Tata Consultancy Services Limited | Mr S Brown | 25 May 2017 | Refused | The application relates to a computer-implemented system for providing an optimised manpower plan and schedule. The system uses distributed architecture so that central servers are interfaced with local computers at a remote location. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and decided that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter. He also considered the decision in Halliburton Energy Services Inc and concluded that the contribution did not have a relevant technical effect. The issue of added matter was also considered briefly but the Hearing Officer decided that the invention would remain excluded whether or not the features in question were present. The application was thus refused as no more than a method of doing business as such. |
| O/246/17 | GB1505495.0 | Fisher-Rosemount Systems Inc. | Mr S Brown | 22 May 2017 | Allowed | The application relates to a user display system for use in a process plant. The display system is configurable, whilst the plant is running, such that a plant operator may alter which aspects of the process plant are represented on the display screen. Updated control data is generated and transmitted to the process plant based on how the display is configured. Two auxiliary claim sets were filed, the first specifying that the control data is generated manually in response to the configured display, the second that it is generated automatically. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test to each claim set and decided for each that the contribution made by the invention did not fall solely within excluded matter since there was a direct causal link between the configured display and control of the process plant. In reaching this decision he also considered the decisions in AT&T Knowledge Ventures LP and CVON, and Gemstar-TV Guide International Inc v Virgin Media Limited. The application was remitted to the examiner for further processing. |
| O/210/17 | GB1400294.3 | Trillium Technology AB | Mr P Thorpe | 02 May 2017 | Refused | The invention relates to a computer based method and system for detecting and highlighting manipulative order patterns of financial securities or similar financial instruments. More specifically the invention analyses local and market wide data to detect compliance related events. The invention further provides a graphical user interface to enable a user to view related data around a compliance event. The Hearing Officer found the invention to be excluded as both a method of doing business and a computer program as such. The application was refused. |
| O/209/17 | GB1319702.5 | Logined BV | Dr J E Porter | 28 April 2017 | Refused | The application related to forecasting oilfield production, based on measured oilfield data. The invention was said to provide a forecasting method which is more direct, accurate and efficient. It uses measured oilfield production data to describe the average behaviour and variability or uncertainty of decline curves which are associated with the data. In particular, an exponential decline curve is created based on oilfield production data, which is expressed as a two dimensional vector. A mean and covariance are determined for that vector, leading to an updated exponential decline curve. During prosecution, the independent claims were amended to include the additional final step of using the update decline curve to “design or augment production facilities, or plan future well or field development, or shut down unproductive wells”. The discussion in the “Background” to the invention said explicitly that forecasts could be used to take these steps, but there was no explicit disclosure of taking such steps in the discussion of the invention itself. However, the Hearing Officer was satisfied that, when the skilled person read the paragraphs of the Background and Summary of the invention together, that person would see that there was a clear flow of reasoning and explanation, which amounted to a clear implicit disclosure that the improved forecasting method of the invention would be used to take the various actions in relation to oilfield production which prior forecasting methods are used for. The amendments to the claims did not add matter. On excluded matter, the Hearing Officer followed Aerotel and assessed the contribution made by the invention as being a computer implemented method of forecasting oilfield production, where an exponential decline curve is created based on oilfield production data, the decline curve is expressed as a two dimensional vector, a mean and covariance are determined for that vector, and an updated mean and covariance are determined and used to create an updated exponential decline curve. He concluded that the contribution resided wholly within the definition of a program for a computer and a mathematical method. The application was refused |
| O/193/17 | GB1019825.7 | Kube Partners Limited | Mrs S E Chalmers | 20 April 2017 | Refused | The invention relates to a scheme for storage of personal data in a database on a cloud computing platform without contravention of territorial privacy laws. The contribution was identified to be a method involving anonymising a subset of data in a database by determining a deviation of that data from reference data; storing deviation identifiers mapped to those deviations remotely and the mappings locally. The Hearing Officer applied the four step approach set out in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the AT&T and HTC judgments and found that the invention was excluded as a program for a computer as such. The application was refused. |
| O/146/17 | GB1015891.3 | Fisher-Rosemount Systems, Inc. | Mr H Jones | 27 March 2017 | Refused | The application relates to displaying additional information on a terminal of a process control system for a process plant. The terminal may be used by a plant operator, who can control aspects of the plant operation via the terminal, or it may be used by a maintenance or other engineer who cannot control the plant but is nevertheless interested in information relating to the operation and configuration of the plant. The additional information is displayed in the form of an electronic sticky note alongside a particular process control object and includes dynamic hyperlinks to ensure information is replicated automatically across similar objects in the control system. A database of dynamic hyperlinks is defined, linking process control objects to textual message content. Data relating to the process control objects are stored in a "configuration" database and the text message content is stored in a different "centralised" database, such that in total three databases are provided. The Hearing Officer found that the contribution fell within the excluded categories of computer program and presentation of information and refused the application under section 18(3). |
| O/145/17 | GGB1313714.6 | BQR Reliability Engineering Ltd and Ariel University Research and Development Company Ltd. | Mr S Brown | 27 March 2017 | Refused | The application relates to a computerised method for estimating the reliability of a system at normal operating conditions. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and decided that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter. He also considered the decisions in AT&T Knowledge Ventures LP and CVON, HTC Europe Co. Ltd. v Apple Inc. and Vicom and concluded that the contribution did not have a relevant technical effect. The application was refused as no more than some combination of a mathematical method and a program for a computer as such. |
| O/595/16 | GB1511187.5 | Shenzhen Audaque Data Technology Ltd | Miss J Pullen | 19 December 2016 | Refused | The application relates to a method of measuring data quality in a scatter plot comprising an enormous number of data points and a system to perform the method. The invention seeks to reduce the number of data points that are analysed when applying data quality rules, by mapping a plurality of effective data points from a first data set to a single data point on a second data set. Non effective data points are corrected so as to avoid unnecessarily mapping across of null/erroneous data points. Consequently, manipulating the second data set would take less processing steps than the manipulation of the first data set to achieve a similar data quality measurement. The hearing officer found the contribution made by the invention to be a computer implemented mathematical method which falls solely in subject matter excluded under section 1(2) as a mathematical method and a program for a computer as such and no relevant technical effect was identified. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/565/16 | GB1422545.2 | Gary Roald Ohlson | Mr P Thorpe | 28 November 2016 | Refused | The application related to a gaming method and computerised apparatus associated with gaming based wagering activities. This was held to be excluded as a method of doing business and a program for a computer as such. The application was therefore refused. |
| O/550/16 | GB1305712.0 | Logined B.V. | Miss J Pullen | 22 November 2016 | Refused | The application relates to geostatics, which is a discipline concerned with spatially distributed random variables, usually applied to 2d or 3d modelling problems in the earth sciences. Multipoint geostatics simulation generates numerical values for pixels such that they match a preset spatial correlation, or known structural properties, while optionally matching predetermined measured data. If there are numerous unknown pixels in the search mask area, the calculation of each unknown pixel becomes very complicated and hence computationally expensive. The hearing officer found that the contribution to lie in using the improved mathematical method steps contained in the claims to achieve the increased computational efficiency when performing geostatistics modelling, rather than in the field of image generation and/or manipulation. The contribution was not considered to be technical in nature. The application was refused under section 1(2) as a mathematical method and a computer program as such. The applicant also raised the issues of estoppel, legitimate and substantive procedural expectation and whether there had been an irregularity under rule 107. |
| O/535/16 | GB1419630.7 | Global Analytics Inc | Mr A Bartlett | 16 November 2016 | Refused | The application relates to a real-time adaptive decision system and method using predictive modelling and transaction data. The processor automatically builds or rebuilds the predictive model, a rebuild taking place when the performance of the model is judged to be below a predefined threshold. The Hearing Officer applied and referenced Aerotel/Macrossan, Symbian, HTC and Halliburton. He found that the contribution made by the invention relates to the generation of a decision relating to a transaction. As the transactions envisaged are financial ones, this falls solely in subject matter excluded under section 1(2) as a program for a computer and/or a method of doing business as such. The application was therefore refused. |
| O/528/16 | GB1416791.0 | Synchronoss Technologies, Inc. | Mr B Buchanan | 14 November 2016 | Refused | The application in suit is concerned with automatically identifying and notifying people about particular events (such as the arrival of a celebrity or host) called “event scenes” occurring at “group events” such as a company offsite activity, a wedding, a sports event or a street festival. The claimed invention processes content generated and submitted by users to a network-based content-sharing service (such as a social media service) and identifies location and timing data from associated metadata and the rate of submissions. Users may then be notified of spontaneous event scenes, or event scenes which are a departure from a schedule at a group event. The Hearing Officer followed the four step test in Aerotel/Macrossan and considered arguments that the present application provided an improved notification to a user at a remote terminal that an event is taking place, akin to the improved inappropriate communication alarm generation of PKTWO. Unlike PKTWO which was held to solve a technical problem, the present invention was found to be implemented by a program for a computer and to solve a business problem, albeit one which is external to the computer. The Hearing Officer confirmed that the AT&T signposts did not suggest a technical contribution and found the application to be excluded under section 1(2). |
| O/490/16 | GB1015890.5 , GB1019647.5 | Fisher-Rosemount Systems, Inc. | Mr H Jones | 21 October 2016 | Refused | The applications relate to displaying additional information on a terminal of a process control system for a process plant. The terminal may be used by a plant operator, who can control aspects of the plant operation via the terminal, or it may be used by a maintenance or other engineer who cannot control the plant but is nevertheless interested in information relating to the operation and configuration of the plant. GB1015890.5 describes a system for providing further information on the terminal by means of dynamic hyperlinks. A database of dynamic hyperlinks is defined linking process control objects to knowledge reference information. When a particular display view is initiated and created for display on a terminal, the dynamic hyperlinks are inserted into the display view based on the process control objects appearing in the view. These can then be selected to display the relevant knowledge reference information. GB 1019647.5 describes a system for displaying additional information in the form of status rollups. In particular, the system automatically generates a summary list of status issues related to process control components based upon filters selected by a user. The selectable status issues could be alarms, messages, abnormal conditions, configuration errors, etc., with particular emphasis being given to the generation of status rollups relating to alarms. The Hearing Officer found in both cases that the contribution fell within the excluded categories of computer program and presentation of information and refused the two applications under section 18(3). It was necessary to extend the compliance period under rule 107 by a few days due to an irregularity in office procedure. |
| O/465/16 | GB1502593.5 | Lim, Shio Hwi | Mr P Thorpe | 03 October 2016 | Refused | The invention relates to a system for allocating users to particular service slots such as for example medical appointments, car-parking spaces, or dining places. The system takes account of not only the particular user who is making an appointment but also other users who could potentially make use of the same slot. The hearing officer found the invention to be excluded as a computer program as such and as a method of doing business as such. |
| O/440/16 | GB1417283.7 | Cloudera, Inc. | Mr H Jones | 20 September 2016 | Refused | The application relates to a system (particularly Apache Hadoop) and method for performing data queries in a distributed computing cluster comprising a set of computers connected to each other across a network. The system is said to have some of the flexibility of known schema-on-read systems and some speed benefits of known-schema-on write systems. The examiner concluded that the invention does not meet the requirements of section 1(2) on the grounds of the actual contribution being a computer program. The hearing officer applied and referenced Symbian, Aerotel/Macrossan, Astron Clinica, Halliburton, AT&T, Gemstar/Virgin, Gale’s application and HTC/Apple. He refused the application under Section 18(3) finding that the contribution lay in a computer program which is excluded under Section 1(2)(c) and in particular: · the technical effect resides in the way the computer program operates on data files and is not concerned with internal workings of processors or how various elements of a computer system interact with each other · the computer itself does not run faster and operates conventionally · the invention does not solve a technical problem within the computer and seems to reside in personal choice rather than a process that provides a solution to a technical problem · this case and that of Symbian can be distinguished on their facts · the IPO is bound by UK law |
| O/392/16 | GB1216858.9 | The Boeing Company | Mr B Micklewright | 12 August 2016 | Refused | The application related to analysing maintenance data for vehicles, in particular aircraft. It involved analysing maintenance actions which correspond to a fault message relating to the vehicle and identifying corrective actions. This information was stored so that it may be retrieved when diagnosing future fault messages. The system inferred that the last corrective action (i.e. the most recent action) associated with a maintenance event was the action which fixed the fault. The hearing officer found that the invention was excluded from patentability as a program for a computer as such and a method of doing business as such. He also found that it lacked an inventive step over two prior art documents. The application was therefore refused. |
| O/358/16 | GB1404486.1, GB1404489.5, GB1404499.4 | Palantir Technologies, Inc | Mr P Mason | 28 July 2016 | Refused | The invention of GB1404499.4 relates to a method for selecting, from a larger dataset, a subset of records that are related to a common entity by using a classifier which produces a matching probability value for each record in the larger dataset. The subset is created from records having a probability value above a set threshold. The invention can identify potentially related records in a dataset whose records do not have well defined common attributes. The inventions of GB1404486.1 and GB1404489.5 relate to methods of comparing every record in a dataset with each of the other records, the comparison made only for selected attributes of each record. The method of ’86.1 specifically searches for any matching records within the set, while the method of ’89.5 checks if a specific record is unique within the set. The methods are particularly suited for very large datasets. The Hearing Officer applied the four step test set out in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the Symbian judgements and the AT&T signposts. He found the inventions as claimed were excluded under Section 1(2) because they relate solely to excluded matter, namely to computer programs as such. The applications were refused. |
| O/353/16 | GB1405450.6 | Lionel Wolovitz | Dr J E Porter | 25 July 2016 | Refused | The invention concerns a system and method for brokering a transaction between a first party and a second party by use of a trusted transaction server (TTS). The transaction being brokered may in principle be any type of transaction and may include actions such as making a payment, withdrawal of money from an ATM, logging in to an online service, or other transactions between parties. The system is arranged such that the two parties do not share sensitive information with each other via a non-secure channel, such as the internet. Instead each party is authenticated with the TTS via a trusted communication channel, and only a non-sensitive transaction code is passed directly between the parties via the non-secure channel. The TTS receives the transaction code and brokers the transaction by requesting transaction details and supplying relevant information to the party responsible for approving the transaction. The hearing officer followed the steps set out in Aerotel in order to determine whether the invention was excluded from patentability. He concluded that the contribution made by the invention lay not in providing a new or more secure system or network overall, but in steps that are taken to establish paths whereby particular information is exchanged in a particular order and a particular way. He found that the contribution circumvented, rather than solved, problems with passing sensitive data over a non-secure channel, and was not technical in nature. It was no more than a computer program per se. However, he did not agree that it amounted to a scheme, rule or method for doing business. The application was refused. |
| O/320/16 | GB1014179.4 | Fisher-Rosemount Systems Inc | Mrs S E Chalmers | 06 July 2016 | Refused | The invention relates generally to process control systems and, more particularly, to methods and apparatus to manage testing of a process control system. The contribution was identified to be a method by which process control routines are effectively tested during normal operation while an associated process is running which saves testing time. This is achieved by monitoring operation of the process control routine and determining if this includes execution of a portion of the process control routine that is substantially similar to a test to be performed. The Hearing Officer applied the four step approach set out in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the Symbian, AT&T and HTC judgments and found that the invention was excluded as a program for a computer as such. The application was refused. |
| O/309/16 | GB1404479.6 | Palantir Technologies Inc. | Mr P Slater | 27 June 2016 | Refused | The invention relates to reducing the computation time needed to transform data sources into an object model using a transformation script which initially includes errors. This is done by providing validation notices as the errors arise when the transformation script is run, a process which is called “proactive debugging” in the application. By providing timely validation notifications, before the processing of all of the data, a user or developer can then fix the error in the transformation script before running the transformation script again. The Hearing Officer considered the four-step test in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the Symbian judgment, and found the contribution to relate to a computer program as such, and having found no technical contribution refused the application under Section 18(3) |
| O/291/16 | GB1204398.0 | Validsoft UK Limited | Mr P Thorpe | 16 June 2016 | Refused | The application which relates to a computer implemented method of authenticating a financial transaction by comparing the location of the user’s mobile device and the location of the place of the transaction was refused as a program for a computer and a method of doing business. |
| O/253/16 | GB1110006.2 | Blyk Services Oy | Mr P Thorpe | 19 May 2016 | Refused | The invention relates to a multimedia message delivery platform for use in providing multimedia messages (MMS) to mobile communication devices, such as mobile telephones or PDAs. More specifically the invention utilises SMS messaging to determine when and what version of the MMS to be sent to mobile device. The hearing officer found the invention to be excluded as a computer program as such and as a method of doing business as such. An objection that the invention lacked an inventive step having regard to certain prior art was not sustained by the Hearing Officer. |
| O/137/16 | GB1212453.3 | Apple Inc | Mr B Micklewright | 15 March 2016 | Refused | The invention related to linking a software application that is pre-installed on a client device with a user account, thereby enabling certain acts to be carried out in relation to that application such as updating or reinstalling the application, or installing the application on another client device associated with the user account. A check is made that the application can be linked to the user account and has not previously been linked. Unique identifiers are used in this verification step. The hearing officer considered the main set of claims and also an auxiliary request and concluded that in both cases the claimed invention lay entirely in the excluded fields of a program for a computer as such and a method of doing business as such. He therefore refused the application. |
| O/136/16 | GB1300966.7, GB1322120.5 | Micro Focus IP Development Ltd | Mr B Buchanan | 15 March 2016 | Refused | This decision covers two applications, both entitled “Interfacing systems and methods”. The first relates to a system for extracting text-based information from a host computer system which presents a text-based user interface. The application claims a method, system and computer program which uses rules-based configuration of components to determine, combine and present visual control objects, such as selection boxes, tables and location information within a graphical user interface. The usability and intuitive interaction by a user with the system is thereby improved. This “emulation” of the underlying host application is achieved without changing the host code or infrastructure and user input may be constrained to formatted options. The integrity of data and business rules is thereby maintained. The second application is divided from the first and additionally displays the user interface on remote devices using web sockets for asynchronous communication over a network. The Hearing Officer carefully considered the patent applications, the arguments and explanation presented at the hearing and identified the alleged contribution. However, he was obliged to consider only those features which were supported by each application when construing the claims. Neither application was found to relate to the presentation of information, but both were refused as excluded subject matter because they related only to a program for a computer as such. |
| O/124/16 | GB1011185.4, GB1500021.9 | Emerson Process Management Power and Water Solutions Inc. | Mrs C L Davies | 07 March 2016 | Refused | Both applications relate to providing a better model of a process control system by determining compensation and error models. Given that the applications were a parent and divisional application, the matter was dealt with at the same hearing. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel test and decided that the contribution identified in both applications did not extend beyond the model itself and lay entirely within the programmable model and hence was excluded under Section 1(2)(c) of the Act as computer programs. The Hearing Officer also considered the signposts set out in the decisions in AT&T Knowledge Ventures LP and CVON and HTC Europe Co. Ltd. v Apple Inc and concluded that as the model was abstract and provided no control or effect on the process control system, this confirmed that it was a program as such. Consequently, both applications were refused as no more than programs for a computer as such. |
| O/023/16 | GB1118123.7 | Intuit Inc. | Mr J Houlihan | 18 January 2016 | Refused | The applications relate to improvements to energy management systems used on sites which are connected to a power grid but also have their own on on-site power sources. The claims related to methods and associated apparatus to more efficiently manage the power production and distribution based on criteria associated with each discrete producer and consumer in the network. The Hearing Officer applied the four step Aerotel test, and the AT&T signposts and found the contribution to be a computer implemented business method which was not technical in nature. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/111/16 | GB 1115871.4, GB 1115872.2 , GB 1115873.0 | BAE Systems plc | Miss J Pullen | 11 January 2016 | Refused | The application concerned “creating a composite program in a computing ecosystem” which lies in the field of cloud computing. The invention is aimed at enabling users to group certain computer programs, or “modules”, with related functionality so that they can be used as a package and/or shared with other users. Once a package is created the user can reopen all the modules together without having to activate them individually and make the links between them. The hearing officer found that the actual contribution of the invention related entirely to a computer program, as such. The invention was therefore excluded by section 1(2) and the application was refused. |
| O/002/16 | GB1207284.9 | The Boeing Company | Mr A Bartlett | 05 January 2016 | Refused | The application concerns a computer based system and method for estimating the cost of moving fuel from one location to another using vehicles and associated personnel and which allows a user to assess the impact of adjusting the resources used. The claims define a system for forming a new vehicle which, in the context of the application, is a system that allows an operator to specify design characteristics that a new vehicle should possess to fulfil a particular fuel delivery task and the creation of an associated data file. The Applicant argued that the contribution was technical because the system also provided a warning function that was equivalent to the monitoring and alarm features of the invention in Protecting Kids the World Over. The Hearing Officer applied the four step Aerotel test, and the AT&T signposts and the reasoning in PKTWO and decided that the contribution relates solely to a method for doing business and a program for a computer as such. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/599/15 | GB1004028.5 | Michael Oluwaseun Bamidele | Mr B Micklewright | 21 December 2015 | Refused | The invention related to the generation, transmission and reproduction of electronic receipts using an Electronic Point Of Sale (EPOS) device. It also included the use of a biometric credit or debit card for user authentication based on a fingerprint scan. The hearing officer found that the invention defined in the claims lacked novelty and inventive step. It was also excluded from patentability as a program for a computer as such and a method of doing business as such. |
| O/597/15 | GB1306420.9, GB1314852.3 | Hitachi Ltd | Mr S Brown | 18 December 2015 | Refused | Both applications relate to revising railway timetables for multiple trains whilst they are en-route. Given the similarity in subject matter the applicants asked for one hearing to cover both applications. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel test and decided that the contributions made by both inventions fell solely within excluded matter. He also considered the decisions in AT&T Knowledge Ventures LP and CVON and HTC Europe Co. Ltd. v Apple Inc. and concluded that the contributions did not have relevant technical effects. Both applications were refused as no more than programmes for a computer as such. |
| O/544/15 | GB1318156.5 | BANDAI NAMCO Games Inc. | Mr B Buchanan | 23 November 2015 | Refused | The application is concerned with a network system which enables a player to play a game via a computer network using game cards carrying game information. The claims define a network system comprising a game card, a display object; and a server and a terminal which exchange information via a network. The display object includes serial information, which is used to limit the number of game cards and terminals the player can register. The Applicant argued that the contribution was technical because system security was improved by preventing illegal and unauthorised use of game cards. The Hearing Officer applied the four step Aerotel test, and the AT&T signposts as modified in HTC v Apple and decided that the contribution relates solely to a method for doing business and a program for a computer as such. The application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/543/15 | GB1212403.8, GB1418078.0 | Swipestation Ltd | Mr P Slater | 19 November 2015 | Refused | The invention relates a system for the redemption of promotional vouchers. The system includes a voucher terminal where a user may present a voucher they have received through whatever means, and the voucher terminal is able to scan said voucher and reproduce it as a standardised printed voucher which can be presented for redemption at a point of sale (POS) device. Promotional vouchers can come in many different forms ranging from the conventional printed vouchers in newspapers to those which are printed on the side of a drinks can, or those that take the form of an image, email or webpage on the screen of a smart phone. It is common place for retail outlets to retain vouchers following redemption for reconciliation of sales at the close of business. Vouchers are therefore commonly stored in the drawer of the POS device at the checkout. However, this presents a problem, when the vouchers are in a non-standard e.g. printed on the side of a drinks can and cannot be placed in the POS drawer as they will not fit. Furthermore, where the voucher is displayed on the screen of a smart phone, the customer may be reluctant to hand it over for security reasons. The invention solves this problem by scanning and replacing any non-standardised voucher with a standardised voucher of a size which fits within the drawer of an associated POS device. The Hearing Officer considered the four-step test in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the Symbian judgment, and found the contribution to relate to a business method as such, and having found no technical contribution refused the application under Section 18(3). |
| O/519/15 | GB1119953.6 | Siemens Medical Solutions USA Inc. | Mr P Thorpe | 09 November 2015 | Refused | The application related to a computer implemented medical image processing system that enables the end user, i.e. the referring physician to access not only the image presented in a medical report but also any interpretation information about how the original medical image was interpreted or processed to produce the finding in the report. Applying the Aerotel/Macrossan test, the Hearing Officer decided that the invention was excluded as a computer program as such. |
| O/479/15 | GB1306415.9 | Netgear Inc | Mrs C L Davies | 13 October 2015 | Refused | The application relates to filtering information in a computer network appliance for modifying an advertising request in a network appliance to obtain a customized advertisement. Thus a recipient receives a more tailored, customised advertising experience. The Hearing Officer considered the four-step approach in Aerotel/Macrossan and found the contribution of the invention to reside solely within the excluded field of a business method and a computer program as such. Having found no technical contribution, the application was refused under section 18(3). |
| O/477/15 | GB1407018.9 | Martin Alexander Hay & Frances Geralyn Boul Hay | Mr A Bartlett | 12 October 2015 | Refused | The application relates to an alternative monetary system, that uses ‘chiral’ concepts. Two distinct forms of chiralkine money are created in equal amounts which are described as “left-handed” and “right-handed”. The monetary system also includes chiralkine property rights, and chiralkine contracts. A bartering organisation (‘register’) keeps a track of transactions in the system. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and decided that the contribution made by the invention was an alternative monetary system and fell solely within excluded matter as a method of doing business. |
| O/326/15 | GB1116561.0 | Novomatic AG | Mr P Thorpe | 13 July 2015 | Refused | The application relates to a group of associated gaming devices such as slot machines configured so that a payout can occur simultaneously on each of the machines in the group. The objective is achieved by providing each machine with synchronised timers and software to generate a lottery win for all the machines at a pseudo random time. The application was refused as a program for a computer and a method of playing a game. |
| O/312/15 | GB1109923.1 | The Boeing Company | Miss J Pullen | 06 July 2015 | Allowed | The application relates to maintenance procedures for aircraft. During the maintenance of an aircraft a component may be identified by scanning a bar code, removed for maintenance procedures and then replaced. A history of data unique to each component can then be accumulated over the life of the component and can be compared to baseline data, such as average operating lifetime and failure rate to determine if the component is considered to be a rogue component and an alert is issued to a user for the component to be discarded. The method results in improvements to aircraft maintenance and therefore, aircraft safety. The claim was considered to be more than a mere business method and also overcame the computer program exclusion. The application was remitted back to the examiner for further substantive examination of deferred matters. |
| O/239/15 | GB1402346.9 | Trakcel Ltd | Mr P Slater | 26 May 2015 | Refused | The invention relates to a method of tracking physiological or medicinal samples through a sequence of processing operations. There are four main steps to the method. The medicinal or physiological sample (for example physiological material harvested or collected from a patient by medical personnel) is firstly harvested or provided. The sample then passes through one or more logistic steps, through one or more processing steps and finally, the sample is administered to a patient in an administration step. There were two independent claims, 1 and 11, which related to a method and system respectively.The Hearing Officer considered the four-step approach in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the Symbian judgment, and found the contribution of the invention to relate to a program for a computer and a business method as such. Having found no technical contribution, the application was refused under Section 18(3). |
| O/186/15 | GB1304110.8 | Box, Inc. | Mr H Jones | 20 April 2015 | Refused | The invention is concerned with providing a preview of a file uploaded to a web-based collaboration platform on a touch screen of a mobile device. The application acknowledges that it is known to make previews of files within a collaboration platform available for viewing on web browsers and for these previews to be generated by converting from the source file to a target preview file. The invention allows previews of files to be more widely available on a wider range of mobile devices, and utilises intermediate file segments generated when converting a source file to a target preview file to then generate previews on mobile devices. The use of intermediate file segments from an earlier conversion saved within the collaboration environment reduces overall processing load when generating mobile client previews. The mobile client device can annotate and manipulate the file previews in a manner consistent with the format of the source document. The hearing officer followed the Aerotel steps and found that the claimed invention did not make a technical contribution to the state of the art. The application was refused. |
| O/184/15 | GB1222096.8 | Supercell Oy | Dr L Cullen | 16 April 2015 | Refused | This application relates to the use of a graphical user interface (GUI) for control of complex technical facilities or simulations thereof. In particular, the application refers to simulation software being used as part of gaming software. A farming simulation is illustrated where a menu, a so-called item specific menu or ISM, of different crop choices are available at each location. This application is concerned with improving the ability of the user to control the game or simulation by providing a GUI that recognises multiple touches at multiple locations made by a swiping motion across the interface by a mouse or, if touch sensitive, by a finger. The advantage offered by this invention is that it enables easier and quicker, and thus more efficient and effective, input of multiple user selections of various types multiple times and across multiple locations. The Agent argued that the IPO has an obligation to harmonise their examination practice with that of the EPO, and other jurisdictions, including the US, where equivalent applications have been granted or are progressing towards grant. In addition they argued that the position held by the IPO and by UK patent courts regarding exclusions from patentability is incorrect in general, and that the principles established in UK case law ought not to be followed. The Agent considers that the invention provides a technical effect that “resources can be more efficiently and rapidly controlled”. Having pointed out that the IPO, as the lowest tier tribunal in the UK, is bound to follow the decisions of the higher courts in the UK, the Hearing Officer used the four step approach from Aerotel and the signposts from AT&T to consider the contribution and found that the invention lacked a technical effect. He concluded that it was excluded under Section 1(2) of the Act because it relates to a programme for a computer and to presentation of information and the application was refused under section 18(3) of the Act. |
| O/139/15 | GB1301651.4 | Box, Inc. | Mr H Jones | 30 March 2015 | Refused | The application relates to a method of determining when to pre-generate a preview file in a web-based collaboration platform with the aim of reducing the time a requesting user is required to wait to view a preview file. This is achieved by determining whether it is likely for a preview of a file to be requested, converting an input format of the file to a target format suitable for providing a preview and then, upon receiving a preview request, providing a preview of the file to the requesting user. The likelihood of a file being requested is determined by identifying a criteria relating to the subset of files which are frequently accessed. The hearing officer followed the Aerotel steps and found that the claimed invention did not make a technical contribution to the state of the art. The application was refused. |
| O/118/15 | GB1004051.7 | Fisher-Rosemount Systems Inc | Mr P Thorpe | 23 March 2015 | Refused | The decision concerns whether the invention set out in patent application GB1004051.7 relates to excluded matter. The invention relates generally to process plants and, more particularly, to the scaling of composite shapes in an editor for graphical representations of components and various activities associated with plant configuration, control, maintenance, and simulation. The Hearing Officer found the invention excluded as a program for a computer and the presentation of information. |
| O/106/15 | GB1202901.3 | WMS Gaming Inc | Mrs S E Chalmers | 10 March 2015 | Refused | The invention relates to a system for integrating online communal wagering and social network functions to enhance social interaction. The contribution lies in providing a “chat console” to enable users of different social networks who are involved in playing the communal game, to communicate directly. This is achieved by the wagering game server being operable to store information correlating participants in the communal wagering game and their respective social network servers. The hearing officer found that the invention was excluded as a method of doing business implemented via a program for a computer as such and therefore refused the application. |
| O/071/15 | GB1122376.5 | Avaya Inc | Mr S Brown | 16 February 2015 | Refused | The application relates to a method for assigning a customer service agent to a customer when, for example, the customer contacts a call centre. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel test and decided that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter. He also considered the decisions in AT&T Knowledge Ventures LP and CVON and HTC Europe Co. Ltd. v Apple Inc. and concluded that the contribution did not have a relevant technical effect. The application was refused as no more than some combination of a business method and a program for a computer as such. The Hearing Officer also considered the issue of novelty and concluded that the application was novel over the disclosure of US7231034 B1. Finally, the Hearing Officer considered inventive step and, following the steps set out in Windsurfing (as restated in Pozzoli), concluded that the invention lacked an inventive step over the disclosure of US7231034 B1. |
| O/057/15 | GB0917689.2 | Senergy Holdings Limited | Mr H Jones | 04 February 2015 | Refused | The application relates to a method of computationally modelling production from a subterranean region with reference to a wellbore and surrounding formation, such as may be encountered in oil and gas exploration and production. The modelling typically provides simulations which predict the flow of oil, water and/or gas flow from a formation, using a viscous resistance parameter. The examiner concluded that the invention did not meet the requirements of section 1(2) predominantly on the grounds of the actual contribution being a computer program. The hearing officer applied and referenced Aerotel/Macrossan, Symbian and Halliburton. He found that the contribution did not lie in a mental act or mathematical method. He found that the contribution lay in a computer program which did not perform a task which was both specific and external to the computer. Hence, it was found that, without further amendment of the claims, the application was excluded, since the actual contribution was not technical in nature. As parts of the application include description in the context of a design process and evaluating optimum well geometry, the hearing officer found that there was scope for the actual contribution to be redefined as a method of design. This would provide a technical actual contribution as in Halliburton. Hence, the decision identifies the possibility of an amendment, which would then be subject to further processing under section 18. |
| O/044/15 | GB1208655.9 | Datanovation Ltd | Mr A Bartlett | 30 January 2015 | Refused | The present application sets out a computerised method for generating a database application that can be and is used to access a respective database for which it has been generated, to for example allow for searching of the database, display of results and manipulation of data. The Hearing Officer applied the AT&T signposts and found that the contribution merely automated the previous process for manually writing programs to access a legacy database and that the invention was excluded as a program for a computer as such. The application was refused |
| O/042/15 | GB1016096.8 | Jeffrey Johnson Clawson | Dr J E Porter | 27 January 2015 | Refused | The invention is concerned with a computer-based system and method for assisting an emergency dispatcher in responding to emergency calls. A diagnostic tool used by the dispatcher collects symptom information systematically over the telephone, particularly to identify a pandemic illness. A message with symptom information is then sent to the responder, allowing them to treat the patient appropriately and take any necessary precautions to reduce the spread of the illness. The invention may also receive geographical location information and analyse it to identify patterns and relationships within the data received to track the spread of a pandemic illness. The hearing officer followed the steps set out in Aerotel in order to determine whether the invention was excluded from patentability. He concluded that the contribution made by the invention lay not in reducing the spread of a pandemic illness but in an improved way of obtaining and analysing medical information from a caller, by using a diagnostic tool to structure diagnostic questions in relation to existing medical understanding of symptoms and pandemic illnesses. This ensured that a dispatcher can obtain the required information and store it consistently for passing to the responder. He concluded that the collating and ordering of medical data in a way which is different from prior art systems, and then sending (in a conventional technical way) a message containing that data, did not offer a technical effect on a process outside the computer. He considered that the first AT&T/CVON signpost did not point to patentability and distinguished this case on its facts from PKTWO. The contribution was also held to be a business method, since it was concerned with administrating, codifying, organising and then outputting the diagnostic information. An argument that section 4A indicated that the invention did not fall within excluded matter was also rejected. |
| O/038/15 | GB1113425.1 | BlueCava Inc | Mr J Houlihan | 26 January 2015 | Refused | The alleged invention relates to a method and computer system to provide users with a customised or tailored experience when interfacing with networked computer services without disclosing personally identifiable information (PII). A request for user behaviour data containing an identifier of a user’s device is received at a device-indexed data server which retrieves user behaviour data associated with the identifier from the server’s memory and updates the user behaviour data by retrieving additional user behaviour data from an aggregator using non-PII data; and sending the updated user behaviour data to the server that provides services to a user. The device-indexed server never receives PII data from the aggregator and the aggregator never receives an indication of the device identifier from the server. The hearing officer found that the actual contribution of the invention related entirely to a method of doing business which, as it was brought about by a computer program, also related to a computer program, as such. Amongst its submissions the applicant criticized the approach of UK courts in some judgments concerning section 1(2), for example the Court of Appeal’s judgment in Re. Aerotel [2007] RPC 7, and argued that EPO case law should be adopted in favour of UK case law in some instances. The hearing officer said he was bound to follow UK precedents and referred to the Court of Appeal’s judgment in Re. Lantana [2014] EWCA Civ 1463 which affirms that the Aerotel four step test is the correct approach for assessing excluded matter and that the so-called “AT&T” signposts modified by the Court of Appeal in HTC v Apple [2013] EWCA 451 are applicable guides for assessing whether a computer program, in particular, is excluded. Applying this test, the hearing officer found the invention to be excluded by Section 1(2) and refused the application. |
| O/037/15 | GB1106332.8 | Crystal World Holdings, Inc. | Mr S Brown | 26 January 2015 | Refused | The application relates to a system for calculating a sports-related financial index to enable the trading of sports-based financial instruments. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and decided that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter. He also considered the decisions in AT&T Knowledge Ventures LP and CVON and HTC Europe Co. Ltd. v Apple Inc. and concluded that the contribution did not have a relevant technical effect. The application was refused as no more than some combination of a business method and a program for a computer as such. |
| O/566/14 | GB1312146.2 | Recipero Ltd | Mr P Slater | 23 December 2014 | Refused | The invention relates to a system for generating electronic security documents on a computing system. The invention provides a new method for generating and storing a security document in a multi-node network in which the document is assigned a unique document identifier including amongst other things a process identifier, and a node identifier providing an indication of the node where the security document was created. This has the effect of reducing the amount of network traffic as it is no longer necessary to check for the creation of duplicate document identifiers on different nodes. In a further embodiment, the security document and document identifier are said to be stored in a database on the same computing node which generated the document. The document identifier thereby providing, by way of the node identifier, an indication of the location in which the document has been stored. This is said to improve the speed with which the document is retrieved, as there is no need for a centralised indexing. The Hearing Officer considered the four-step test in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the Symbian judgment, and found the contribution to relate to a computer program as such, and having found no technical contribution refused the application under Section 18(3). |
| O/551/14 | GB1109626.0 | MasterCard International Incorporated | Miss J Pullen | 17 December 2014 | Refused | The application relates to redeeming credits in a loyalty program, such as airmiles in an airline frequent flyer program, against purchases a retail environment and processing the transaction on a point-of-sale (“POS”) terminal. In order to complete the transaction the cost of the purchase must be converted from a POS terminal currency, using an exchange rate, to the equivalent number of loyalty program credits. If the user has sufficient credits available the transaction will be processed, if not the transaction will be declined. The Hearing Officer found that the invention related to computer implemented methods of doing business as such, could find no saving amendments, and refused the application. |
| O/547/14 | GB1117410.9 | Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd | Mr B Micklewright | 17 December 2014 | Refused | The invention related to providing a personalized advertising service through portable terminals such as mobile phones and Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs). In the invention, if a particular user wishes a personalized advertisement to be delivered to other users or group members an advertising server can provide the personalized advertisement based on the preference set by the particular user. The hearing officer found that the contribution involved sending a new type of group creation request message so that a personalised advertisement requested by a particular group member is delivered to other group members using this shared information in a process that requires fewer messages to be sent between server and device and a simpler authentication process. The hearing officer found that the contribution was excluded as a program for a computer as such and a method of doing business as such and therefore refused the application. |
| O/521/14 | GB1020675.3, GB1020734.8 | Intel Corporation | Mr B Buchanan | 08 December 2014 | Refused | This decision concerns whether the inventions claimed in two patent applications relate to excluded matter and whether they are capable of industrial application. Both claimed inventions relate to performance analysis of multi-core processors when executing code. In particular, they provide a means of visualising the relationships between tasks running on a multi-core processor using trace analysis. The inventions work by there being two versions of the code being developed. Alongside conventional executable code is a version called “instrumented code” which includes a number of Application Program Interfaces (APIs). The APIs provide trace information about the tasks running in threads which is processed and displayed on a graphical user interface (GUI). By visualising the tasks and relationships, a software developer may identify and make improvements to the way the code runs by reprogramming it. The hearing officer considered that the tests for industrial applicability and excluded matter were separate and independent, and found that following the Aerotel/Macrossan four step test and applying the AT&T/CVON signposts, both applications were excluded from patentability as a program for a computer and the presentation of information as such. |
| O/460/14 | GB1110449.4 | PET Technology Store limited | Mr S Brown | 27 October 2014 | Refused | The application relates to a system for identifying lost or stolen animals and reuniting them with their owners. The hearing officer decided that the claims as most recently amended included added matter that was not present in the application as filed. He also applied the Windsurfing/Pozzoli test and concluded that the claims were inventive over the cited prior art. This remained true even when the added subject matter was omitted. Finally, the Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and identified that the contribution made by the invention resided in processing data such that only unique identification numbers were provided to hand-held scanners with owner personal data being held elsewhere. As this was done in order to conform with data protection legislation the hearing officer concluded that the contribution fell solely within excluded matter and did not have a relevant technical effect. The application was refused as no more than some combination of a method of doing business and a programme for a computer as such. |
| O/453/14 | GB1119833.0 | Toshiba Research Limited | Mr H Jones | 21 October 2014 | Allowed | The application relates to the field of data retrieval and indexing, and seeks to provide an improvement over the “bag-of-words” method used in natural language processing where independent items (words) taken from an object (a text document) are represented as an unordered collection thereby losing much of the semantic information present in the original document. The proposed method expresses the text as a group of word pairs, disregarding the order of the word pairs. This grouping in the described bag-of-wordpairs (or bag-of-wordgroups where more than 2 words are grouped) method thus allows more of the semantic information to be modelled. The examiner had objected that the invention was no more than a program for a computer. The hearing officer found that the amended claims, which were restricted to a method of speech processing, did not fall solely within an excluded category. The application was remitted to the examiner for further substantive examination. |
| O/435/14 | GB1313219.6 | Gene Onyx Limited | Dr L Cullen | 08 October 2014 | Allowed | PCT application WO2013/093407 entitled “Product selection using genetic analysis” entered the UK national phase as application GB1313219.6. It relates to a method of using genetic analysis to assess the suitability of active ingredients in skincare, cosmetic, cosmeceutical or nutricosmetic products for use by an individual. The method associates the cosmetically active agent with the individual via their genetic make-up in contrast with prior art teachings where the cosmetically active agent is associated with a particular skin condition or disorder. The method associates hot-spots in a person’s genome - so called single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP’s) - with an individual’s susceptibility or lack of response to cosmetically active compounds. A weight is associated to each SNP based on the impact it has on the cosmetically active compound being able to deliver its cosmetic outcome. Weights for individual cosmetically active agents are added together to determine the suitability of a cosmetic product comprising these agents. The examiner argued that application does not the requirements of Section 1(2) as a mental act or a computer as such or that there was sufficient disclosure to enable the person skilled in the art to work the invention as claimed, in particular to assign the weightings to the SNPs. The hearing officer, applying Aerotel/Macrossan found that the contribution of the method did not fall solely in the excluded matter and lay in the identification of SNP’s at certain locations in an individual’s genome and an association of these SNP’s with cosmetically active compounds based on how the said compounds interacted with the SNP’s in question. Furthermore, the method of involves the step of identifying the best cosmetic product based on an individual’s genetic material. Regarding sufficiency, there were concerns that the identification and association of SNP’s with particular compounds and the application of weightings would be an undue burden to those wishing to perform the invention. The applicant provided evidence that the skilled team would not face such a burden in performing the method of the invention. Identification of the SNP’s could be performed by biomedical text/data mining and bio-informatics and the application of weightings could be performed using known methodologies. The application was remitted to the examiner for further processing under Section 18. |
| O/371/14 | GB1201052.6 | Sustainable Energy and Heating Systems Ltd | Miss J Pullen | 19 August 2014 | Allowed | The application relates to a metering system to measure usage of renewable energy produced by a privately owned micro-generating unit. The micro-generating unit is part of a larger commercial installation which operates on the basis of ‘sharecropping’, where private users are allocated amounts of renewable energy based upon their investment into the scheme. The amount of renewable energy allocated to a user and other contractual terms and conditions are stored in a remote database which is accessed by a meter when appropriate security authorisation, i.e. chip-and-pin, is used. The meter is able to identify the amount of renewable energy allocated to the user and interrupt the metering of energy supplied from a standard network supplier until the allocation of renewable energy is used up. The functionality of the meter also includes the ability to account for surpluses being fed back into an energy network and also measurement of any energy use which is over and above that produced by the micro-generating unit. The hearing officer found that the current independent claim was excluded under section 1(2)(c) as a method of doing business, but found subject matter in the dependent claims relating to the functionality of the meter which would not fall within the excluded categories. Subject to the applicant submitting amended claims which clearly include the functionality of the meter, the application is remitted back to the examiner for further substantive examination. |
| O/324/14 | GB1103236.4 | Language Line Services Inc | Mr B Micklewright | 23 July 2014 | Refused | The invention concerned a web-based system for evaluating a person’s language translation skills by providing written and oral examinations to the person, collating and evaluating the examinations, and providing the person with examination results and a certificate if they pass both examinations. The hearing officer found that the invention claimed in all claims was excluded from patentability as a method of doing business as such and a program for a computer as such. He therefore refused the application. |
| O/211/14 | GB1206535.5 | Mr Mark Henrik Sandstrom | Miss J Pullen | 13 May 2014 | Refused | The invention relates to system and method for economising the use of a dynamically allocated multi-core computer platform service by incentivising users to reduce the number of cores demanded by means of a billing algorithm which assesses billables for the service for a given user on successive billing assessment periods based on the amount of cores a given user has i) an entitlement for and ii) gets allocated to meet its demand. The hearing officer found that the invention was excluded as a method of doing business implemented via a program for a computer as such and therefore refused the application. |
| O/179/14 | GB1217392.8 | Research In Motion Limited | Mr H Jones | 24 April 2014 | Allowed | The application relates to virtual keyboards for smartphone-type devices, the keyboards having a single key which functions in either delete or backspace mode and a display associated with the key to indicate its mode of operation. It is known to combine the functions of certain keys on a keyboard in order to minimise the amount of space dedicated to keyboards and to maximise the display area available to present content. The present invention combines the delete and backspace functions into a single key and displays the direction of character deletion to the user as an indicia on the key. A further feature of the invention is concerned with changing the direction of the delete and backspace functions depending on the current language of the keyboard (e.g. from right to left in English and from left to right in Arabic), which is solved by allowing the function of the single key to change in accordance with the keyboard language. This latter feature was included in amended claims submitted shortly before the hearing. The Hearing officer found that changing the keyboard display to give an indication of the direction of character deletion was excluded as a presentation of information, but found that the amended claim, which required the function of the delete/backspace key to change depending on the language of the keyboard, did not fall within any of the excluded categories of invention. Subject to the applicant submitting amended claims which clearly specify this latter feature, the application was remitted to the examiner for further substantive examination. |
| O/174/14 | GB1112905.3 | Sainsbury’s Supermarkets Ltd | Mr J Houlihan | 16 April 2014 | Refused | The alleged invention relates to a computer system and method for executing a point of sale transaction. In particular, the invention provides a point of sale terminal which is capable of receiving first price data from at least one item purchased by a customer and a server which receives both transaction data from the point of sale terminal and second price data pertaining to comparable competitor items from an update server so that the first and second price data can be compared and a voucher issued based on the comparison. The hearing officer found that the actual contribution of the invention related entirely to a method of doing business which, as it was brought about by a computer program, also related to a computer program, as such. The invention was therefore excluded by section 1(2) and the application was refused. |
| O/168/14 | GB1110373.6 | The Boeing Company | Mr S Brown | 15 April 2014 | Refused | The application relates to a system for collaborative decision making which takes place over a network of computer terminals. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and decided that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter. He also considered the decisions in AT&T Knowledge Ventures LP and CVON and HTC Europe Co. Ltd. v Apple Inc. and concluded that the contribution did not have a relevant technical effect. The application was refused as no more than a program for a computer as such. |
| O/152/14 | GB0920190.6 | JDA Software Group, Inc | Mr P Thorpe | 11 April 2014 | Refused | The application relates to a method of managing inventory. More specifically it relates to a computer based system that uses data describing demand patterns (both actual and those which were forecasted, or historical forecasted demand), replenishment patterns of the supply chain network and data describing the supply chain network to optimise inventory policy parameters for each of one or more items which define a policy as to how the inventory of each item is to be maintained. The Hearing Officer found the invention to be excluded both as a method of doing business and as a computer program as such. The application was refused. |
| O/151/14 | GB1000865.4 | JDA Software Group, Inc | Mr P Thorpe | 11 April 2014 | Refused | The application relates to a method of managing inventory. More specifically it relates to how data representing on-hand inventory at any point in a supply chain is stored in a series of nested buckets. This provides data at various levels of detail down to individual day/quantity pairs. Structuring the data in this way provides improvements in how the inventory is managed. The Hearing Officer found the invention to be excluded both as a method of doing business and as a computer program as such. The application was refused. |
| O/519/13 | GB1013502.8 | Logined B.V. | Mr B Micklewright | 20 December 2013 | Refused | The invention related to a method of allowing a user to interact with a 3D geoscience object displayed on a computer display. The user identifies a feature of interest in the object and is then able to manipulate the image using two or more control points in 3D space, e.g. to rotate, translate or zoom in on the image of the feature on the display. The hearing officer found that the invention was excluded as a program for a computer as such and the presentation of information as such and therefore refused the application. |
| O/513/13 | GB1301971.6 | WMS Gaming, Inc | Mr J Houlihan | 19 December 2013 | Refused | The alleged invention relates to a wagering game network where mobile phones are used to transfer funds to gaming machines in casinos. In particular, it allows payments to be made to a gaming machine either before or after the player has signed onto the machine. The Hearing Officer found that the actual contribution of the invention related entirely to a method of doing business, which as it was implemented by a computer, also related to a computer program, as such. The invention was therefore excluded by section 1(2) and the application was refused. |
| O/483/13 | GB1201771.1 | H J N Duckworth et al | Mr P Slater | 29 November 2013 | Refused | Retailers often use a variety of sales promotions involving discounted prices, loyalty points, gift vouchers and prize draw entries to encourage customers to purchase their products and to reward them for their loyalty. The present invention provides an alternative to conventional prize draw systems whereby eligible customers receive prize draw entries which are linked to a corresponding entry in an official government or state run lottery such as the National Lottery. This provides a greater incentive to customers to buy the retailer’s products as they will have the opportunity to win much larger prizes albeit with a smaller chance of winning. The invention includes a so-called “promotional prize draw management system” which provides an interface between the retailer’s own prize draw systems and the official lottery’s computer system. The promotional prize draw management system provides secure access to the lottery system and is programmed to obtain lottery entries which are used to generate corresponding prize draw entries for the retailer that are then distributed to eligible customers. The promotional prize draw management system also receives the lottery results, processes winning payments and performs necessary accounting functions. The Hearing Officer considered the four-step test in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the Symbian judgment, and found the contribution to relate to a business method and a computer program as such, and having found no technical contribution refused the application under Section 18(3). |
| O/452/13 | GB1223381.3 | Bloom Health Corporation | Dr L Cullen | 08 November 2013 | Refused | PCT application WO 2012/009073 entitled “Systems and methods for customizing product selections based on member parameters and providing the selections to members for purchase" entered the UK national phase as application GB1223381.3. It relates to a web based method for allowing an employee to purchase from a recommended selection of products, in this case healthcare insurance products. The selection is based on parameters entered by the employer, in particular, the amount of money that the employer is prepared to provide for the employee to purchase a product. The selection is also tailored to the employee, based on an employee profile established through the employee’s responses to a survey. The hearing officer, applying the test as outlined in Aerotel/Macrossan, found that the contribution resided in the provision of a secure web-based method for selecting products for purchase by an employee which ensures the suitability of the product for the employee by basing the selection on a personality profile determined using a survey and by allowing the employee the opportunity to review the personality profile and change it if necessary. The applicant argued that because of the use of a survey and personality profile which can be reviewed by the employee, the invention results in a more accurate and reliable recommendation of products and, thus, the computer itself works more effectively as a computer and so makes a technical contribution. The Hearing officer found that this contribution, while it may well provide a more accurate recommendation of products, does not have any impact on how the computer itself behaves - it does not result in a better computer that is more efficient and/or effective. The hearing officer concluded that the application as claimed is excluded under Section 1(2) of the Act because it relates to a programme for a computer and to a method of doing business and the application was refused under section 18(3) of the Act. |
| O/402/13 | GB1201857.8 | Oka-bi Limited | Mr P Slater | 09 October 2013 | Refused | The invention relates to a computer implemented system for obscuring user selected attributes within a dataset, for example, a patient’s name and address, details of their medical condition, their gender and date of birth etc. by replacing the data content with a computer generated pseudonym to create a pseudonymised database. Metadata is used to describe the various entries and/or columns within the dataset. This metadata is presented in the form of a list of all the data items and/or columns contained within the original dataset to an end user via an interface configured to allow the user to select those items of data which are to be stored in the new database along with those which are to be pseudonymised by having their content replaced by the computer generated pseudonyms. Two types of pseudonymisation are envisaged. A repeat pseudonymisation and a unique pseudonymisation. Where an item of data is unique to a particular patient, for example their NHS number, it is desirable to use the same repeating pseudonym to represent multiple occurrences of the same number. This enables data relating to a particular patient to be collated on the basis of the repeating pseudonyms without the need to restore the original dataset thus reducing the computational burden on the system. Computer executable code in the form of Structured Query Language (SQL) scripts are then created and executed in order to generate the pseudonymised database. Users with access to the database may then request permission to view the original de-pseudonymised and depending upon their access rights they will either be presented with the original data or a subset thereof pseudonymised. The Hearing Officer considered the four-step test in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the Symbian judgment, and found the contribution to relate to a computer program as such, and having found no technical contribution refused the application under Section 18(3). |
| O/388/13 | GB1103433.7 | WMS Gaming, Inc. | Mr B Micklewright | 27 September 2013 | Refused | The invention concerned transferring monetary amounts from a player’s casino account to a particular wagering game machine so that the player may sign into that machine and play the game. A mobile telephone interface was provided to the player which presented them with a map of the casino floor and players were able to drag and drop monetary amounts onto particular gaming machines. That amount was then transferred to the particular machine. The hearing officer found that the contribution lay wholly in the excluded fields of a program for a computer as such and a method of doing business as such and therefore refused the application. |
| O/296/13 | GB0919725.2 | Fisher-Rosemount Systems Inc | Mr P Slater | 25 July 2013 | Refused | The invention relates to a method of upgrading software in a process control system. It is often necessary as with all software installations to deploy new versions of the software which contain bug fixes and patches. Upgrades are usually accompanied by release notes which provide guidance to the plant engineer on how to install the upgrade as well as information relating to how this will affect the various components in the system. However, it is an arduous and time consuming task for the engineer to work through lengthy release notes and to install patches which are often poorly documented. Furthermore, it is common for companies to operate multiple process control systems on geographically separate sites each having different device configurations which means that software maintenance is a complex task which may require the plant engineer to travel long distances between sites. The invention provides a new arrangement for generating customised release notes in which knowledgebase articles (i.e. user-submitted articles and comments regarding the practical usage of a process control system, including techniques, known issues, workarounds, and the like) are combined with general release notes relating to the specific upgrade and are then filtered based on the actual configuration of the process system to present the plant engineer with the most relevant information relating to the upgrade and any potential effects it may have on his system in order for him to make a reasoned decision as to whether or not to deploy the upgrade. Upgrades can be made remotely by the plant engineer without taking the plant offline to ensure “continuous” operation and avoid loss of revenue. The Hearing Officer considered the four-step test in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the Symbian judgment, and found the contribution to relate to a computer program as such, and having found no technical contribution refused the application under Section 18(3). |
| O/295/13 | GB1118650.9 | Mobiroo Inc. | Mr P Slater | 24 July 2013 | Refused | The invention relates to a method of distributing advertisements to digital devices such as mobile phones and laptops by inserting them into software applications (“apps”) to be downloaded onto the device. Typically, the advertisements are embedded into a new or modified app, or are supplied via a remote server for display in a reserved portion of the devices display screen when the app is initiated or whilst it is running The Hearing Officer considered the four-step test in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the Symbian judgment, and found the contribution to relate to a business method and a computer program as such, and having found no technical contribution refused the application under Section 18(3). |
| O/286/13 | GB1008676.7, GB1300718.2 | Fox Entertainment Group | Dr J E Porter | 16 July 2013 | Refused | The inventions of both applications concern the secure distribution of digital media content - and in particular the secure distribution of digital feature films to trusted digital cinema outlets. A digital cinema master is transformed into encrypted digital cinema packages, which can then be distributed and viewed at remote locations. A packaging platform, with access to a digital encryption key platform, generates one or more encrypted files. These encrypted files may comprise various components of the film, such as picture, sound, reel number, subtitles in a certain language etc, and they are generated based upon booking information from the outlet in question. This information is obtained via an interface with a booking component. Together, these encrypted files make up a version of the film to be distributed to the outlet in question. The hearing officer followed the steps set out in Aerotel in order to determine whether the inventions were excluded from patentability. He concluded that the contribution made by the inventions lay not in providing a new or more secure digital media distribution system overall, but in a different way of generating encryption keys within such a system. In GB10, encryptions keys are automatically generated in response to booking information and are for specific viewings on specific trusted equipment. In GB13, they are automatically generated in response to a packaging request from an authorised user or terminal. He found that the automatic encryption processing, based on particular data, is no more than the operation of a computer program per se. However, he did not agree that the automatic encryption process amounted to a scheme, rule or method for doing business. The applications were refused. |
| O/281/13 | GB1101744.9 | LexisNexis Risk Solutions, Inc | Mr B Buchanan | 11 July 2013 | Refused | The invention relates to a database of driving performance data, which receives data from multiple sources and which may provide data to different parties. The driving performance data may be used for assessing risk for the purposes of calculating insurance premiums, or other purposes such as advertising and marketing and may be used by bodies including government agencies, employers or for consumer protection. The invention uses telematic driver data and vehicle data from on-board devices, and aggregated data from other sources, to produce driving performance data. At least some of the data is transformed into a common format. A violation code engine is configured to separate and categorise driver violations in a historical record to provide a driver violation pattern representing violation of e.g. laws or regulations concerning the operation of a vehicle. The applicants argued that the invention comprises technical apparatus, that the transformation of data is a technical task and that it solves the technical problem of sharing disparate data. They also argued that that the provision of a driver violation pattern is not a method for doing business as such. The Hearing Officer considered whether the claimed invention was excluded from patentability under section 1(2). He followed the four step test set-out in Aerotel/Macrossan as confirmed by Symbian in considering whether the contribution provided by the invention is actually technical. He applied the AT&T signposts and followed the reasoning in Halliburton regarding methods for doing business. The claims were found to define an invention falling solely within the excluded subject matter, as a program for a computer and a method for doing business as such. Consequently it was not necessary to decide whether the claims defined an inventive step. The application was refused. |
| O/260/13 | GB1018115.4 | WMS Gaming Inc | Dr L Cullen | 24 June 2013 | Refused | Patent decision BL number O/260/13 Concerning rights in GB1018115.4 Hearing Officer Dr L Cullen Decision date 24 June 2013 Person(s) or Company(s) involved WMS Gaming Inc Provisions discussed Sections 1(2) and 17(5)(b) Keywords Excluded fields (refused) Related Decisions None Summary PCT application WO 2009/128847 entitled “Apparatus for playing wagering games” entered the UK national phase as patent application GB1018115.4. This invention allows a player to play a wagering game at a machine in the casino using funds in a remote account. Specifically, it allows one or more players to use syndicate funds or, alternatively, it gives a person remote from the player, the opportunity to allow the player in the casino to play on their behalf. The hearing officer, applying the test as outlined in Aerotel/Macrossan, found that the application as claimed related to excluded matter. The applicant argued that the alleged contribution made by the invention was the activation or putting into operation of a game machine in response to two electronic events. This was referred to by the applicant as ‘conditioning’ the system. However, the Hearing Officer found that the contribution was a way of allowing a player in a casino to play a wagering game using funds from a third party and that this ‘conditioning’ was making sure that there are funds available for the user to play. This contribution was found to lie in an excluded area - as a method of doing business and as a computer programme. The examiner exercised discretion on behalf of the comptroller and issued a report under Section 17(5)(b) to say that a search of the amended claims on file would serve no useful purpose. The hearing officer considered this exercise of discretion adverse to the applicant and found that the examiner was entitled to take this action because the invention as claimed related to excluded matter. |
| O/248/13 | GB1008930.8 | Aueon Inc | Mr H Jones | 13 June 2013 | Refused | The application relates to a method of generating a list of cancer drug treatment options based on the status of molecular markers derived from a sample of a tumor in a patient. It is claimed as a method of diagnosing cancer which comprises the steps of interrogating a computer-implemented database and producing a list of efficacious drug treatment options. The examiner argues that the invention is not a method of diagnosis and that the claim, as a consequence, is unclear. The examiner also argues that the invention is excluded from patentability as relating to a computer program as such. The applicant insists that the invention can be defined in terms of a method of diagnosis, and argues on the basis of the EPO Enlarged Board of Appeal Opinion in G1/04 that methods of diagnosis are specified in the EPC as being inventions. The Hearing Officer reviewed the requirements for methods of diagnosis set out by the Enlarged Board of Appeal and found that the invention did no relate to such a method. He went on to find that the invention was excluded as being a program for a computer as such. It was not necessary to consider a separate argument on lack of inventive step. |
| O/245/13 | GB1003231.6 | The Rocket Science Group, LLC | Mrs C L Davies | 07 June 2013 | Refused | The application relates to a way of improving the success of an email to a group of recipients by determining which of at least two test email messages is acted on more than the other by respective identified segments of the group, and sending this preferred email to a portion of the group. In particular, at least two test emails are sent to respective segments of the group and the preferred email from the test emails may then be sent to the remainder of the group. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test in light of Symbian and the signposts found in the AT&T/Cvon judgment. The Hearing Officer concluded that the contribution related solely to excluded matter as a business method and a computer program as such. The application was refused. |
| O/244/13 | GB1016416.8 | Apple Inc | Mr B Buchanan | 06 June 2013 | Refused | The invention relates to a data synchronization protocol, in which synchronization messages to be exchanged between a client and server comprise separate sync modes (e.g. fast, slow, reset) associated with different dataclasses of data to be synchronized. The sync modes may be provided in parallel and the data may be updated in parallel. This is achieved by proposing and agreeing the sync mode for each dataclass; sending sync-start, sync-changes and finally a sync-commit command between client and server. By sending commands in parallel, data can be updated with fewer message round trips. Thus the advantages of the claimed invention are greater reliability and lower bandwidth usage (by using fewer messages and roundtrips) as well as recovery from interruption (by using sync anchors to track sync sessions). The Hearing Officer considered whether the claimed invention was excluded from patentability under section 1(2). He followed the four step test set-out in Aerotel/Macrossan as confirmed by Symbian in considering whether the contribution provided by the synchronization protocol is actually technical. The claims were found to define an invention falling solely within the excluded subject matter, as a program for a computer and which does not provide the required technical contribution. The application was refused. |
| O/228/13 | GB0818639.7 | Afilias Technologies Limited | Mr S Brown | 30 May 2013 | Refused | The application relates to transcoding a web site by storing information that is found on one page of the site, inserting it into the transcoded version of another page, and providing the result to a mobile communication device. The ‘stored information’ may be a street address, a map, a telephone number or a brand logo. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and also considered the decisions in Symbian, AT&T Knowledge Ventures LP and CVON, Autonomy, and Townsend. He concluded that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter. The application was refused as no more than a program for a computer and the presentation of information as such. |
| O/198/13 | GB1103866.8 | WMS Gaming Inc | Mrs S E Chalmers | 14 May 2013 | Refused | The invention relates to the creation of wagering games. It works by providing a development computer which is operable to break down a wagering game into various parts (“widgets”) and output a game logic widget, a presentation engine widget and an aesthetic assets widget. The wagering game editor operating on a user’s computer is able, under the control of a user, to allow the user to select widgets from various widget palettes. The editor is then able to determine if a selected presentation engine widget is compatible with a selected aesthetic assets widget and also determine if a selected presentation widget is compatible with a selected game logic widget. If both comparisons are positive, then the widgets are assembled into a wagering game and transmitted back to the development computer and can be made available to the devices of other users. The game developer can thus use the creativity of the user community to create new games. The Hearing Officer applied the four step test set out in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the Symbian, AT&T and Halliburton judgments. She found the invention as claimed was excluded under Section 1(2) because it related solely to excluded matter, namely to a computer program and a business method as such. The application was refused. |
| O/193/13 | GB1103237.2 | Language Line Services, Inc | Mr P Thorpe | 14 May 2013 | Refused | The application relates to a method and apparatus for determining the competency of human language interpreters. More specifically the invention, which is computer based, evaluates the proficiency of language interpreters, including in terms of determining if they have knowledge of specific technical terms in a certain field, for example medicine. The invention seeks to provide a standardised test of language ability that then certifies an interpreter’s language ability and determines the necessary language training requirements. The system can also provide subject specific training. Applying the Aerotel/Macrossan test, the hearing officer decided that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter. The application was refused as being a method of doing business and a progam for a computer. |
| O/177/13 | GB1006801.3 | Sony Corporation and Sony Electronics Inc. | Mrs S E Chalmers | 30 April 2013 | Refused | The invention is a computer-implemented method for determining and communicating a customer service recommendation in response to problems encountered in the use of an electronic device when interacting with other devices or services. For example, a portable music player made by one manufacturer may encounter difficulties when attempting to play songs downloaded from an Internet service provider. These difficulties are compounded when multiple devices and services interact as it may not be possible to isolate the problem because the customer care services of the manufacturer and provider only have access to their own transaction information for the device or service. The solution offered by the invention is the provision of a repository infrastructure to store all transaction information to allow one manufacturer or provider - on permission of the user using secure ID - to access and review transactions that occurred with other manufacturers or service providers. In this way, the problem can be identified and the user informed of the steps needed to rectify the problem. The Hearing Officer applied the four step test set out in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the Symbian and Halliburton judgements. She found the invention as claimed was excluded under Section 1(2) because it related solely to excluded matter, namely to a computer program and a business method as such. First and second auxiliary claims were also considered, but these were also found not to define a patentable invention. The application was refused. |
| O/174/13 | GB1019471.0 | Motorola Mobility, Inc. | Mr B Buchanan | 29 April 2013 | Refused | The invention relates to the customisation of a graphical user interface (GUI) of a networked communication device which is used to access services such as calls, messaging and the Internet. A service usage history is analysed to enable the GUI to be customised dependent upon user patterns and preferences. The invention prioritises the placement and display of elements for selecting service options on the GUI accordingly. Consequently, the user experiences quicker and easier access to services, because the invention presents service options in accordance with the determined most likely next user action. The Hearing Officer considered whether the claimed invention was excluded from patentability under section 1(2). He followed the four step test set-out in Aerotel/Macrossan as confirmed by Symbian in considering whether the better interface, which enables a user to access communication services more quickly, provides the required technical contribution. The claims were found to define an invention falling solely within the excluded subject matter and which does not provide the required technical contribution. First and second auxiliary claims were also considered, but these were also found not to define a patentable invention. The application was refused. |
| O/163/13 | GB1018114.7 | The Washington Post Company | Mrs C L Davies | 24 April 2013 | Refused | The application relates to a data processing system and method in which tailored content is sent from the data processing system to a user’s computer based on a user record that the user can update. There is a data repository in which information files and their associated metadata are stored and the data processing system is used to selectively retrieve information files from the repository and provide a set of results to the user in the form of an executable document transferred across a network. A two-stage filtering process based upon attributes previously selected by the user is used to selectively retrieve the content which is presented to the user as the executable document when they select one of their “channels”. The user record is modified when the user selects certain mark-up associated with the information file, the mark-up also being displayed as part of the executable document. The user record is also displayed. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test in light of Symbian and noting the signposts found in the AT&T/Cvon judgment. The Hearing Officer concluded that the actual contribution did not satisfy any of the signposts and found that the contribution related solely to excluded matter as a computer program as such. The application was refused. |
| O/149/13 | GB1011864.4 | Visa USA Inc | Mr P Slater | 11 April 2013 | Refused | The invention relates to a method and/or apparatus for conducting financial transactions or the making of electronic payments wherein so called “push” transactions i.e. transactions initiated by the purchaser are completed without having to establish a direct connection with the seller (“or payee”). In order for the payment to be made, the purchaser sends a payment instruction message e.g. in the form of an e-mail, including payee information which is used to identify the person to whom the payment should be made, to a central server. In the prior art, the payee information included a “merchant identifier” which was used to uniquely identify the payee. However, in the present application there is no merchant identifier as such, and payments are made on the basis of payee information contained within the payment instruction message. The invention specifically deals with the case where the payment instruction message includes only partial payee information which insufficient to uniquely identify the payee, for example, where the partial payee information includes an incomplete payee name or a wrong address. In this case, software running on the server can be used to determine the complete payee name and correct address and to “substantially” complete the payee information to a degree of accuracy required to make the payment. A payment authorisation is then sent to the purchaser’s bank or credit card company to complete the payment. There are various embodiments described wherein searching of third party databases, fuzzy logic and neural network models are used to complete the payee information. The Hearing Officer considered the four-step test in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the Symbian judgment, and found the contribution to relate to a business method and a computer program as such, and having found no technical contribution refused the application under Section 18(3). |
| O/140/13 | GB0916751.1 | IGT | Mr J Houlihan | 27 March 2013 | Refused | The application concerns game playing services in game machines, such as slot machines or video poker games. The thrust of the application is to enable game patrons to recover left-amounts which may arise from transactions involving different currencies. This is facilitated by software in the game machine’s logic modules. These left-over amounts can be awarded as cash, prizes or as credits restricted for use in the game operator’s business. The hearing officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and particularly took account of Symbian, AT&T/CVON and Halliburton. He found that the claims related entirely to a method for doing business and a computer program, as such, and therefore refused the application. |
| O/137/13 | GB0921575.7 | WMS Gaming Inc. | Mr S Brown | 26 March 2013 | Refused | The application relates to a system for displaying a web page having a plurality of icons, each icon allowing access to a corresponding wagering game under the control of one of a plurality of source servers. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and decided that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter. He also considered the decisions in Symbian, Gemstar v Virgin, and AT&T Knowledge Ventures LP and CVON and concluded that the contribution did not have a relevant technical effect. The application was refused as no more than a program for a computer as such. |
| O/111/13 | GB1012091.3 | LexisNexis Risk Solutions Inc | Mr P Thorpe | 14 March 2013 | Refused | The application relates to a method and computer program for detecting fraudulent mortgage applications. More specifically the invention compares applications to identify those with common data in certain predetermined fields for example the address of the property referred to in the mortgage application. Those records with common data are then checked for any inconsistencies in other fields with any inconsistencies signalling possible fraud. Applying the the Aerotel/Macrossan test, the hearing officer decided that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter. The application was refused as being a method of doing business and a progam for a computer. |
| O/107/13 | GB1003773.7 | eBay | Mrs C L Davies | 06 March 2013 | Refused | The application relates to a system for enabling a user to access access controlled data. The invention is based on using a so-called "peer-to-peer" network and allows a user to pass on to another user a media file that they have downloaded. That further user can then request permission to play the file without having to start again by downloading the file from a server, the request however naturally involving a payment. What allows the user to play the file is data incorporated into a "header" which is separated from the main data of the media file, i.e. the music/video data itself. The Hearing Officer applied the four step test set out in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the Symbian judgments and the AT&T signposts and found that the invention is excluded under Section 1(2) because it relates solely to excluded matter, namely to a computer program and a business method as such. The application was refused. |
| O/091/13 | GB0813340.7 | Intuit Inc. | Mrs S E Chalmers | 26 February 2013 | Refused | The invention relates to a method for dynamically configuring a subset of modules of a software product based on the features purchased. The user receives an identifier corresponding to the purchase and this purchase information is stored on a server. The user then makes an access request for the software using the identifier and the server provides configuration instructions to enable the purchased software. In response to another access request made at a later date, a newer version of the configuration instructions will be provided. For example, the updated configuration instructions might allow access to modules not enabled in the software as purchased or might result in an updated version of a given module that was already enabled by the original configuration instructions. The Hearing Officer applied the four step test set out in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the Symbian and Halliburton judgements and the AT&T signposts. She found the invention as claimed is excluded under Section 1(2) because it relates solely to excluded matter, namely to a computer program and a business method as such. The application was refused. |
| O/058/13 | GB0812587.4 | Forensic Pathways | Mr H Jones | 07 February 2013 | Refused | The application relates to a computer program for consolidating data relating to telephone calls gathered from multiple sources and for analysing this data to identify networks of people and the links between them. It finds particular application in the field of digital forensics, which involves the recovery and examination of material found in digital devices such as computers and mobile phones in support of criminal investigations. The Hearing Officer found that the contribution made by the invention, namely a better tool for cleaning telecommunication data and identifying networks of individuals, was not technical and that the invention was excluded as a computer program. The application was refused. |
| O/056/13 | GB1014714.8 | Lantana Ltd | Mr S Brown | 04 February 2013 | Refused | The application relates to retrieving data from a remote computer using e-mail. A local computer sends a first e-mail containing machine-readable retrieval criteria and the remote computer responds with an e-mail containing the requested data. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and decided that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter. He also considered the decisions in IGT/Acres Gaming , Gemstar v Virgin and in AT&T Knowledge Ventures LP and CVON and concluded that the contribution did not have a relevant technical effect. The application was refused as no more than a program for a computer as such. |
| O/035/13 | GB0900941.6 | Fisher-Rosemount Systems, Inc. | Dr J E Porter | 23 January 2013 | Refused | The invention is concerned with the configuration, monitoring and control of complex process plants, and with allowing a process plant operator to create or configure process plant displays and interfaces in order to monitor and control the plant. The operator conducts a search (e.g. a keyword search) of interface modules, and so identifies and then selects those which he wishes to incorporate into the existing process plant interfaces or displays. Once the desired interface modules are incorporated, the relevant pieces of the process plant equipment are controlled or configured accordingly. The hearing officer followed the steps set out in Aerotel in order to determine whether the invention was excluded from patentability. He concluded that the alleged contribution made by the invention lay in providing an improved way of creating a process plant operator interface, and did not extend to providing an improved process plant control system. He found that this contribution fell solely within excluded matter, as it was no more than a program for a computer. |
| O/004/13 | GB1100108.8 | Accenture Global Services Limited | Mr P Thorpe | 04 January 2013 | Refused | The application relates to a method and computer program for predicting the cost of emerging technologies. The invention applied standard S curves to certain data points and also enabled the impact of various drivers on the predicted costs to be graphically represented. Applying the the Aerotel/Macrossan test, the hearing officer decided that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter. The application was refused as being a progam for a computer, a method of doing business and a mathematical method as such. |
| O/512/12 | GB0915612.6 | Canon Europa N.V. | Mr B Buchanan | 28 December 2012 | Refused | The invention relates to a print system that enables the communication and display of meta data accounting tags for user selection and association with a print job, which permits the analysis and accounting of print jobs. Accounting tags may relate to cost centres, and are arranged on ordered levels, for example in a tree structure, to represent departments, teams and so on. For a given selected accounting tag on a particular level, only a subset of all others available will be relevant for further selection. Therefore by arranging the tags on levels, as opposed to one simple list, fewer tags need to be communicated, displayed and are available for selection at a time, because only those which are relevant are used. In a network printing environment, this means less meta data is transmitted and so network traffic is reduced. The Hearing Officer considered the four-step test in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the Symbian judgment, and the AT&T signposts. He found that the invention as claimed is excluded under section 1(2) because it relates solely to excluded matter; namely a method for doing business, the presentation of information and a program for a computer as such. |
| O/510/12 | GB0914884.2 | Fisher-Rosemount Systems Inc. | Mr S Brown | 21 December 2012 | Refused | The application relates to a method of operating a process plant by responding to information presented in reports. The reports are produced automatically by extracting historical process control data from databases and synchronising it with other data. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and decided that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter. He also considered the decision in AT&T Knowledge Ventures LP and CVON and concluded that the contribution did not have a relevant technical effect. The application was refused as no more than a program for a computer and a method for doing business as such. |
| O/502/12 | GB0802816.9 | Plastic Logic Limited | Mr P Slater | 18 December 2012 | Refused | The invention relates to an electronic document reader and an associated method for formatting or optimising pages, or images of pages, for display on the reader. Essentially, the invention is designed to remove the wasted areas around the margins of the page, to the extent they can be removed without losing information from the pages such as the page numbers. This is achieved by analysing the pages to determine the smallest margin which can be removed from the pages prior to displaying them. This gives the appearance that the page fills the whole of the display screen, with the border of the display effectively replacing the traditional page margins. Re-formatting the pages in this way optimises the size of the content, and ensures that similar scales are applied across all the pages so that the text does not shrink or grow as the user moves between the pages. Formatting of the pages maybe achieved using a conventional printer driver associated with the reader to manipulate the pages or alternatively pages may be manipulated remotely and then downloaded onto the reader. Remote manipulation of the pages requires less processing on the part of the reader and has the potential to lower its power consumption and increase its battery life. The Hearing Officer considered the four-step test in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the Symbian judgment, and found the contribution to relate to a computer program and the presentation of information as such, and having found no technical contribution refused the application under Section 18(3). |
| O/498/12 | GB0914378.5 | Milliken & Company | Miss J Pullen | 14 December 2012 | Refused | The application relates to an automated system for generating large numbers of digitally defined patterns suitable for printing on textiles, in particular carpet tiles. The pattern is a composite formed from at least two digitally superimposed layers, the first is a base pattern, the second and any subsequent layers are overlay patterns. A related series of patterns are generated such that, in use, no two carpet tiles in a series have exactly the same composite pattern but have a common pattern which serves to unify the overall appearance when the carpet tiles are installed. The Hearing Officer considered the four-step test in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the Symbian judgment, and found the contribution lay in a computer based process for generating a composite pattern comprised of a base pattern and at least one overlay by randomly selecting overlay patterns from a library of overlay patterns until each overlay pattern has been chosen. The Hearing Officer could find no technical contribution and so refused the application under Section 18(3). |
| O/489/12 | GB1203666.1 | Shop.com | Miss J Pullen | 07 December 2012 | Refused | The application relates to electronic online commerce and a system which allows a gift giver to predefine a selection of gifts from which the gift receiver is able to make a selection. The gift giver is able to set rules which the gift receiver must abide by in order to receive the promised gift(s), such as total price, number of gifts etc. The system works in conjunction with one or more vendors in order to produce purchase orders and invoicing. The gift giver will only be charged the value of the selected gifts. The Hearing Officer considered the four-step test in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the Symbian judgment, and found the contribution lies in a method of doing business which is implemented via a computer program as opposed to being in the specific arrangement of the hardware used to implement the system. The Hearing Officer could find no technical contribution and so refused the applications under Section 18(3). |
| O/486/12 | GB1004799.1 | E-BAY INC. | Mr A Swaffer | 06 December 2012 | Refused | The application relates to a system and method for securely transferring an amount of money from a first party to a second party using mobile phones. This is achieved by the first party sending a transfer request text message from their mobile phone to a server, wherein the request comprises a mobile phone number associated with a mobile phone of the second party. The server notifies the second party of the request and the identity of the first party. The server receives a personal identification component from the mobile phone of the second party. The second party’s identity is verified and the money is transferred from an account associated with the first party’s mobile phone to an account associated with the second party’s mobile phone. The Hearing Officer found that the invention relates to a method for doing business and a program for a computer, and refused the application. |
| O/442/12 | GB1021747.9 | Quantum Corporation | Mr P Thorpe | 14 November 2012 | Refused | The application related to method of storing data in a computer. The method relied on de-duplication of the data such that only one copy of the data is stored. If an attempt is made to store a further copy of the same data then instead of storing that same data again, a pointer to the first copy of the data is stored instead. The invention applied different de-duplication methodologies depending on certain characteristics of the data. Applying the Aerotel/Macrossan test, the hearing officer decided that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter. The application was refused as being a progam for a computer as such. |
| O/438/12 | GB0817814.7 | Fisher-Rosemount Systems, Inc | Mr H Jones | 12 November 2012 | Allowed | The application relates to a method of managing, maintaining and storing process models associated with a control routine in a process control system. A process model is described as being a representation of the dynamic relationship between process inputs and outputs, and can be used to directly generate the necessary control routine in a computer-control system. A process model can be “tuned” over time such that it better represents the process under control and the conditions of the system at a particular point in time. These “tuned” process models can be stored so that the control system can learn from previous experience, i.e. the control system can select from a list of process models the one most suited to the particular condition of the system. In a real-time system the number of process models may grow without bounds, although the rate of growth will be process dependent. The invention is concerned with limiting the number of process models stored in memory and thereby speeding up the process of selecting the most appropriate process model. The hearing officer found that the contribution was technical in that it related to a better way of controlling an industrial process. The application was remitted to the examiner for grant. |
| O/441/12 | GB1001078.3 | Hewlett-Packard Development Company L.P. | Mr A Bartlett | 12 November 2012 | Refused | The invention addresses the problem of how to optimise postage costs for printed items. It uses pre-stored print characteristics (e.g. weight of various paper types, covers, staples etc.) to allow the weight of an item to be calculated prior to printing. These characteristics can then be modified to produce a printed item with an optimised postage weight. At the hearing the Hearing Officer was asked to consider the scope of the exclusions in relation to Vicom and Halliburton. It was also put to the Hearing Officer that the step of printing was a crucial element of the contribution without which the concept of “weight” was meaningless, thus distinguishing the application from e.g. Macrossan’s application. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and also considered the judgement in Symbian. After considering the need not to elevate the form of a claim above its substance (following Aerotel) and the relevance of the Vicom and Halliburton judgements to the current application, the Hearing Officer concluded that the invention did not make a technical contribution and refused the application as relating to a method for doing business and a program for a computer as such. |
| O/408/12 | GB0922596.2 | Logined BV | Mr A Bartlett | 18 October 2012 | Refused | The application relates to a method for optimising wellbore production given various constraints. In the first step of the methodology, information is provided on the geological structure from which the hydrocarbons are to be extracted. The macroscopic flow in the reservoir is then modelled using a set of 3-dimensional cuboid elements. Optimised completions (the operations needed to convert the borehole into a productive well) are determined for each cuboid. A Figure of Merit (i.e. Total Net Value) is then determined. An iterative process is then run to optimise the Figure of Merit by repeatedly running the simulator for different Field Development Plans until convergence criteria are met. The Hearing Officer found that in contrast to the method for designing drill bits deemed patentable in Halliburton, a computer implemented method of developing plans for drilling for, and extracting, oil or gas was too abstract a concept for it to be said to provide a technical contribution. He therefore refused the application as relating to a program for a computer as such. In doing so he applied the four-step Aerotel test and found that the invention did not represent something “specific and external to the computer” in contrast to the invention in Halliburton (where the method concerned determining the technical specification for a tangible, technical item). |
| O/386/12 | GB0907144.0 | JDA Software Group, Inc. | Mr H Jones | 11 October 2012 | Refused | The application relates to a method of determining a transportation plan for delivery of goods and retrieval of associated salvage equipment, e.g. pallets, cages, containers, throughout a transportation network. The network may comprise a number of distribution centres, supplier locations, stores and delivery locations, and the aim of the invention is to optimise the scheduling of fleet operations for the delivery of goods and the collection of salvage equipment once the goods have been delivered and unloaded. The method involves the modelling of a virtual location as a destination for salvage equipment and in constraining the virtual location to be at a zero distance from a de-kit location and an infinite distance from other locations. The modelling is undertaken by computer and a transportation plan is developed in the form of delivery schedules for fleet operators. The Hearing Officer found that the invention relates to a program for a computer and refused the application. |
| O/390/12 | GB0809880.8 | Fisher-Rosemount Systems, Inc | Mr B Buchanan | 09 October 2012 | Allowed | The invention relates to accessing parameters in a process control system and controlling a process using a parameter value. A universal communication interface enables communication between field devices and other data sources in a process control system. As well as enhancing compatibility between components of the system, the universal interface caches parameter values. This means that in the event of a communications failure between one or more components of the system, when a parameter value cannot be obtained directly, a stored copy of the parameter value can be obtained from the local cache memory and can be used to control the process. The Hearing Officer considered the four-step test in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the Symbian judgment, and the AT&T signposts. He found that although the contribution is implemented by a program for a computer, there is a technical effect on a process outside the computer. The application was not refused under section 1(2) and was referred back to the Examiner. |
| O/347/12 | GB0802676.7 | Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd | Mr P Thorpe | 08 October 2012 | Refused | The application related to a method for selectively displaying images for example photographs of buildings, embedded in an electronic map. The Hearing Officer found the invention to be excluded as a progam for a computer but not as presentation of information. The application was refused. |
| O/379/12 | GB0916278.5 | Bank of America Corporation | Mr S Brown | 04 October 2012 | Refused | The application relates to a method of providing a financial ‘risk score’ within the authorisation process of a wireless financial transaction. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and decided that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter. He also considered the Court of Appeal decision in Symbian and concluded that the contribution did not have a relevant technical effect. The application was refused as no more than a program for a computer and a method for doing business as such. |
| O/367/12 | GB0911029.7 | Bank of America Corporation | Mrs S E Chalmers | 28 September 2012 | Refused | The application is concerned with a communications network to enable consumers to share purchasing decision information with each other within a mobile phone environment. For example, one consumer may post information on a special offer or about specific goods and services on a central database which can then be shared with other members of the network. By using the geographical context of a mobile phone logged on to the network, the database can send relevant information relating to the actual physical location of that mobile phone. The Hearing Officer applied the four part test set out in the Aerotel/Macrossan judgment, found the invention to be excluded as a computer program and as a method for doing business as such, and refused the application. She did not consider the invention provided a technical contribution of the type found in Symbian or Halliburton. |
| O/361/12 | GB1202963.3 | Cummins-Allison Corp | Mrs S E Chalmers | 26 September 2012 | Refused | The application is concerned with a system and method for processing documents such as currency notes for deposit in a bank. The documents are scanned, the images stored in a memory and the deposit amount sent via a communications link to a display device at the bank. The system includes a document processing device to count the notes and calculate the deposit amount which is compared with the deposit amount received via the communication link using a blind balancing operation. The received deposit amount will only be displayed if the amounts match. The Hearing Officer applied the four part test set out in the Aerotel/Macrossan judgment, found the invention to be excluded as a computer program and as a method of doing business as such, and refused the application. She did not consider the invention provided a technical contribution of the type found in Symbian or Halliburton. |
| O/349/12 | GB0917061.4 | Mitac International Corporation | Mr A Bartlett | 17 September 2012 | Refused | The invention concerns the display of points of interest around a location on the screen of a navigation device. In urban areas a large number of such points often need to be displayed which can lead to a cluttered display. In order to make the display less cluttered the icons representing the points of interest around a point on a map selected by touching the screen are arranged in an easy to read pattern pattern by creating lines or polygons around the centre point and locating the icons on the line or shape. Once a “touch removal” event occurs the icons continue to be displayed for a predetermined time period. The Hearing Officer considered the four-step test in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the Symbian judgment, and found the contribution to relate to the presentation of information and/or a program for a computer as such, and having applied the signposts of AT&T CVON found no technical contribution and refused the application under Section 18(3). |
| O/315/12 | GB1001729.1 | Innovation Science Pty Limited | Mr B Buchanan | 16 August 2012 | Refused | The invention relates to a method and system for determining the possible location and timing of objects, including people and packages, in a transportation network. Objects joining and leaving the network are detected by sensors such as ticket barriers, number plate recognition and biometric or image recognition means. Using information relating to the network about nodes (e.g. stations or depots), paths (e.g. routes between nodes) and timings (e.g. scheduled timetable or actual transition times), the invention determines the potential whereabouts or journey characteristics of objects within the network within a time frame. The Hearing Officer considered the four-step test in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the Symbian judgment, and found the contribution to relate to a mathematical method, a method for doing business and a program for a computer as such, and having found no technical contribution refused the application under Section 18(3). |
| O/303/12 | GB1005621.6 | Tencent Technology (Shenzhen) Company Limited | Dr J E Porter | 06 August 2012 | Refused | The invention concerns language-based interaction with a virtual pet. It involves processing natural language input from a user and then obtaining the language characteristics of either the user himself or the pet owner who owns the virtual pet to be chatted with. A response from the pet is generated in natural language, based upon the input, the language characteristics of the user or the owner of the pet to be chatted with, and stored knowledge. The hearing officer followed the steps set out in Aerotel in order to determine whether the invention was excluded from patentability. Having rejected arguments that the contribution lay in a new system or new configuration of hardware and software, he found that the contribution lay in software which provided better user interaction with a virtual pet, by enabling a user to chat with either their own pet or someone else’s, and by generating responses to the user which reflected the language characteristics of the user or pet owner of the pet to be chatted with. Having considered the AT&T/CVON signposts, he found that this was not a contribution that was technical in nature. The application was refused. |
| O/301/12 | GB1001438.9 | Tencent Technology (Shenzhen) Company Limited | Dr J E Porter | 06 August 2012 | Refused | The invention concerns language-based interaction with a virtual pet. It involves processing natural language input from a user and obtaining the user’s language characteristics from a database. These characteristics are adjusted in light of the processed input, with the result that the virtual pet keeps learning the language characteristics of the user, and employs language in its responses which embodies those characteristics. The hearing officer followed the steps set out in Aerotel in order to determine whether the invention was excluded from patentability. Having rejected arguments that the contribution lay in a new system or new configuration of hardware and software, he found that the contribution lay in software which provided better user interaction with a virtual entity, by enabling the continuous learning of the language characteristics of the user and by generating responses to the user which reflected those language characteristics. Having considered the AT&T/CVON signposts, he found that this was not a contribution that was technical in nature. The application was refused. |
| O/297/12 | GB0709391.7 | Mr David Duke | Mrs S E Chalmers | 02 August 2012 | Refused | The invention relates to a password entry system designed to prevent third parties from stealing personal identification numbers (PINs) when they are entered in plain view. This is achieved by generating a matrix which contains random characters such as letters at the login process and providing selection buttons to select the row in which a character of the password exists. To make it harder for an unauthorised person to work out the password, each character is present in more than one line at once and the user has a choice of selection buttons. When the user enters his password, he selects a row which contains the character of the password and repeats this action for each character in the order in which they appear in the password. The computer can then match the password against the data collected from the characters in the selected rows. The Hearing Officer found that the invention claimed involved an inventive step. She went on to apply the four step test set out in Aerotel/Macrossan and found that the contribution made by the invention fell within excluded fields, namely to a computer program and the presentation of information as such. The application was refused. |
| O/290/12 | GB1017911.7 | Andrzej Stochniol | Mr P Slater | 30 July 2012 | Refused | he invention relates to financial schemes for reducing the emission of greenhouse gases from vehicles engaged in international trade. In particular, the application describes a method for recording and reporting fuel consumption for vehicles travelling between different geographical areas. Various proposals exist for using so-called “emission fees” to control and drive down fuel consumption in international maritime transport and aviation. However, previous proposals suffer in two respects. Firstly, whilst it is not technically difficult to measure emissions on a small-scale, it becomes far more complex to record and report emissions from several thousand vehicles on a global scale. Secondly, and perhaps more importantly, it has become ever more politically difficult to apportion the cost of emissions to their respective countries. It is widely acknowledged that aviation and maritime emissions are driven by the level of international trade, and that this is controlled by consumer demand, and that therefore a country’s share of emissions should be related to its level of imports. However, for example, container ships often transport goods to many different countries during the same voyage which makes a direct calculation of emissions attributable to different goods and/or countries an administratively complex task. What the applicant has done is to devise a new method of recording fuel consumption for a given type of vehicle, carrying goods between two or more countries over a period of time which are stored in an electronic registry. These records are then used to attribute fuel consumption and emissions to particular geographical areas using a predetermined usage-to-area attribution rule. The results can then be reported and used to calculate emission fees for a market-based emission reduction scheme aimed at reducing vehicle emissions globally. The Hearing Officer considered the four-step test in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the Symbian judgment, and found the contribution to relate to a business method and a computer program as such, and having found no technical contribution refused the application under Section 18(3). |
| O/260/12 | GB0920058.5 | Fabio Passetti et al | Mr B Micklewright | 03 July 2012 | Refused | The application relates to a computer system which implements a computer program for searching and displaying biological information stored in one or more databases by converting the information from the database(s) into a ternary matrix using three separate characters to represent biological information eg 0, 1 & |. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and decided that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter. He also considered the Court of Appeal decision in Symbian and the decisions in AT&T & Cvon and concluded that the contribution did not have a relevant technical effect. The application was refused as no more than a program for a computer and the presentation of information as such. |
| O/238/12 | GB0717004.6 | Fisher-Rosemount Systems, Inc. | Mr H Jones | 28 June 2012 | Refused | The invention related to a system which enables users to make secondary use of distributed content such as music, audio or video data and to perform editing to create subsidiary content, and to share that content. The claims themselves related to means for controlling how that subsidiary content is deleted from the database and how re-uploading of that content is prevented. The hearing officer found that the contribution lay entirely in the field of programs for computers as such and therefore refused the application. |
| O/240/12 | GB0819091.0 | Sony Corporation | Mr B Micklewright | 21 June 2012 | Refused | The application relates to graphical programming language object editing and reporting tool for designing a process control entity within an offline database. A user selects one or more programming language object fragments from a library displayed within a stencil view of the graphical display, and selected fragments are displayed within an object view of the display. Using selected programming language object fragments, the user is able to configure a graphical programming language object for a process control entity within the programming language object view. The graphical programming language object is stored as a configuration file in a format used by the offline database, and may be mapped to a format different from that used by the offline database to generate reporting documentation and sharing the configuration file with a configuration database. The examiner considered the invention to be excluded as a program for a computer. Amended claims were filed on the last day of the compliance period containing a main set and an auxiliary set of claims. The Hearing Officer reviewed Office practice for handling auxiliary claims and found that it is possible for applicants to file such claims provided that the order of ranking of the claims has been clearly indicated and that they can be put into effect within the compliance period. The claims were examined after the end of the compliance period. The applicant’s request to extend the compliance period was filed after the end of the two-month period allowed for doing so. The Hearing Officer found that although the rules do not explicitly preclude this two-month period for filing a request for extension from itself being extended, it cannot be possible to do so as there would then be no certainty about when an application should be terminated. He also found that there was no irregularity of procedure that would require the Comptroller to exercise discretion in favour of extending the two-month period. The order of ranking of the main and auxiliary claims was also found to be unclear. On the substantive issue of excluded invention, the Hearing Officer reviewed a number of precedent cases and concluded that the contribution made by the invention was not technical. The application was refused. |
| O/236/12 | GB0706549.3 | Padmanabhan Mahalingham | Mr A Bartlett | 15 June 2012 | Refused | The invention concerns a telephone conferencing system of the sort that allows multiple participants to take part in a single telephone discussion from various locations. A first caller initiates the conference call by entering a conference code and security passcode of his own choice and complexity (having agreed the time of the conference and intended usage codes with other potential participants beforehand). Subsequent callers may join the conference by entering the correct usage codes, thereby eliminating the need for conferencing system to pre-allot the codes in response to a preceding conference request. Applying the Aerotel/Macrossan test, as modified by Symbian, the hearing officer found the contribution to be a new way of administering teleconference calls using a conventional teleconferencing platform and refused the sole independent claim under s.1(2)(c) as method of doing business and a computer program. However, the application was referred back to the examiner for consideration of a dependent claim relating to the alleviation of overloading in the presence of high numbers of conference participants. |
| O/212/12 | GB1005619.0 | AdInsight Limited | Mr H Jones | 25 May 2012 | Refused | The invention relates to a method for allocating telephone numbers to users of an online web page. A company can collect a large amount of information from users of their websites such as web pages viewed, search terms used, and this data can be analysed to determine products the customers may be interested in and increase sales generated through the website. When a customer uses the website but completes a purchase offline, e.g. by telephone, it is possible to associate online information relating to the customer and an offline purchase by assigning a different telephone number to each user of the website. Recycling of telephone numbers is necessary to reduce the number of telephone numbers required and therefore reduce costs. Previously the telephone numbers have been recycled by associating a telephone number with a customer for a predetermined time. The hearing officer found that there was an inventive step over the prior art but that the invention was excluded as a computer program and a method of doing business. |
| O/191/12 | GB0918198.3 | Bank of America Corporation | Mr S Brown | 09 May 2012 | Refused | The application relates to a method of retrieving financial information stored in a first database by using a second database, which contains data referencing the first database, as a dictionary or index. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and decided that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter. He also considered the Court of Appeal decision in Symbian and the decisions in AT&T & Cvon and Halliburton and concluded that the contribution did not have a relevant technical effect. The application was refused as no more than a program for a computer and a method for doing business as such. |
| O/187/12 | GB1105406.1 | Compurants Ltd | Mr P Slater | 04 May 2012 | Refused | The invention relates to a computer-controlled system for ordering food and/or drink in a restaurant in which a projector mounted above the dining table is used to project plate shaped images of the actual food which can be ordered onto the surface of the table where customers are able to select the food they wish to order by touching the appropriate images on the table. In particular, the projected images are intended to show how the food would like on a plate thereby aiding, for example, the visually impaired in ordering their food. The Hearing Officer considered the four-step test in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the Symbian judgment, and found the contribution to relate to the presentation of information, a business method and a computer program as such, and having found no technical contribution refused the application under Section 18(3). The Hearing Office also applied the Windsurfing/Pozzoli test in respect of claim 1 and found the invention to lack an inventive step. |
| O/184/12 | GB0822907.2 | Telefonakiebolaget LM Ericsson | Dr L Cullen | 02 May 2012 | Refused | This application relates to a method and arrangement for investigating an unknown calling party that has sent a communication request to a called party, in order to provide information on the relationship between the calling party and the called party. The called party can then use this information to decide whether to accept the call or not. The invention is executed on a presence server in an IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) network, where the presence server is adapted to provide additional relationship data. Applying the Aerotel/Macrossan test, as modified by Symbian and the AT&T/CVON signposts, and also taking into account the Halliburton decision, the hearing officer found that the contribution of the invention relates to a computer programme executing a method in a presence server comprising receiving a relation query for the calling party from the called party, determining, for example, by searching the various contact lists on the presence server, if the called party is known and related to a third party, directly or indirectly, known and related to the called party from a group that has been defined for the called party. This contribution was found to relate only to excluded matter. The invention was found to be a programme for a computer as such, which is matter excluded under s.1(2), and it was refused under s.18(3). |
| O/172/12 | GB0822475.0 | Logined B.V. | Mr P Slater | 24 April 2012 | Refused | The invention relates to the management of oil production in an oil-field, and in particular to a so-called “Field Management (FM) systems” which can be used to simulate various aspects of the oil field from surface facilities to subsurface structures. This involves the use of various simulators and economic software packages to assist in production of field development, surface facility design, and revenue optimisation amongst other things. Traditionally, the Field Management (FM) functionality has been distributed amongst the various subsurface reservoir simulators, surface facility network simulators, and associated controllers which make up the field management system. However, because each separate simulator had its own management functions associated with its proprietary brand, it was often necessary to run separate field management strategies for every individual subsurface and surface simulator. It was therefore extremely difficult to consolidate the field management strategies from different simulators into a single strategy that could be used to direct drilling activities that optimized the contribution of the drilling activity to all aspects of the reservoir field. It would therefore be desirable to create a field management system to which various proprietary simulators can be coupled and decoupled as and when required so that different field management strategies can be assessed easily without modification of the underlying software. The invention seeks to overcome this problem by making the field management system more modular and flexible. This is said to be achieved by defining a field management “framework” consisting of a series of adaptors and open interfaces which are used to connect various simulators to the field management system in a manner which is independent of their origin, structure or functionality. The Hearing Officer considered the four-step test in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the Symbian judgment, and found the contribution to relate to a computer program as such, and having found no technical contribution refused the application under Section 18(3). |
| O/143/12 | GB1019835.6 | Lexis Nexis Risk Solutions FL Inc | Miss J Pullen | 30 March 2012 | Refused | The invention relates to systems and methods for improved database queries where records may be incomplete and/or confidential and/or duplicated, to combine records in a way such that when a search query is executed multiple possible matches are returned. Each match is assigned a confidence score, and a test of the ratio between a highly ranked result and the next result, or sum of the other results in formed, and if the confidence score exceeds a threshold the result is output. The output identifies the records in a ‘foreign’ database which should be retrieved. The Hearing Officer considered the four-step test in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the Symbian judgment, and found the contribution to relate to methods and systems for making database queries with returned values having a high confidence level. The Hearing Officer found the contribution to relate to a computer program as such and could find no technical contribution and so refused the applications under Section 18(3). |
| O/119/12 | GB0624420.6 | Sony United Kingdom Limited | Mr P Slater | 16 March 2012 | Refused | The invention relates to a system for managing the storage and retrieval of items of information, for example, video images and/or audio data, and the indexing of those images by generation of additional keywords and phrases “textual metadata” representing the identity or content of those images. This additional data is stored alongside the image to facilitate searching. Traditionally, indexing of images by creation of textual metadata has been done manually by the user inspecting each and every image prior to storage, selecting appropriate keywords and phrases which are then keyed in and stored in association with the image. This process is both onerous to the user and costly. The present invention seeks to solve the problem by at least partly automating the process. The system achieves this by creating a feature vector representing various properties of the image e.g. colour, and using this feature vector to search for similar images which are already stored within the system. The system then searches the textual data stored alongside those images for common keywords and/or phrases and stores these alongside the original image or presents the user with an opportunity to accept, add or edit the metadata before storage. This new combination of feature vector and textual metadata being more representative of the images identity and content helps facilitate the process of searching making it faster, more efficient and presenting more reliable results. The Hearing Officer considered the four-step test in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the Symbian judgment, and having considered the signposts set out in AT&T/CVON, found the contribution to relate to a computer program as such, and having found no technical contribution refused the application under Section 18(3). |
| O/116/12 | GB1013441.9 | Logined BV | Dr J E Porter | 12 March 2012 | Refused | The invention is concerned with optimising the use of a number of connected computing resources, particularly in relation to the processing of large amounts of data or information associated with computer modelling of an oilfield or hydrocarbon reservoir. The devices are defined as primary and secondary nodes and are connected by a peer-to-peer network. An oilfield services application running at a primary node identifies a particular operation which can be performed at a secondary node, which results in an object created on the basis of stored seismic data. The object is then accessed and integrated into the workflow at the primary node. The hearing officer followed the steps set out in Aerotel in order to determine whether the invention was excluded from patentability. He concluded that the alleged contribution made by the invention lay in the bringing of seismic data into an oilfield services application in a particular way, where the application involves an earth model running at a primary node. Having considered Halliburton and the AT&T/CVON signposts, he found that this contribution fell solely within excluded matter, as it was no more than a program for a computer. In particular, he found that the computer devices were not operating in a new way, nor with improved speed and reliability - and contrasted the position with that in Symbian. He also found that the contribution did not overcome the problem by improving the functioning of the devices, so that they functioned faster in processing the data. Instead, it circumvented the problem by sharing the data processing tasks between conventional devices in a particular way. |
| O/096/12 | GB0807865.1, GB0807867.7 | VMware Inc | Mr P Thorpe | 09 March 2012 | Allowed | The decision considered whether the inventions claimed in two similar applications were excluded as computer programs. The applications related to the deployment of software applications to the runtime environment of a computer. The hearing officer, applying the test set out in Aerotel/Macrossan found that the inventions involved, in both cases a technical contribution and as such were not excluded as computer programs as such. The cases were remitted back to the examiner. |
| O/114/12 | GB 0910818. | Jagwood Inc | Dr L Cullen | 09 March 2012 | Refused | Patent application GB 0910818.4, entitled “Process of and apparatus for notification of financial documents and the like”, concerns a payments advice system and its method of use. This system allows a payer to send a payment to a payee and associate it with a document stored on the advice system. To enable the payee to access the document, the payer provides an address in the form of a short uniform resource identifier as a reference in the payment. This allows the payee to view the reference on their bank statement and use it to access the document. Thus, the necessary documents can be associated directly with each financial transaction. A short uniform resource indicator is a means to describe how to access the relevant document and describes where it is and how to identify it, for example, a web address in the form of traditional and standard domain name address combined with a reference number. The use of such short uniform resource indicators was suggested to give the application the necessary “technical character” as a document retrieval system. Applying the Aerotel/Macrossan test, as modified by Symbian, the hearing officer found that contribution made by the claims of the application is a means of sending a payment from a payer to a payee wherein the payment detail includes a payment amount and a reference, the reference being an internet address that can be used to access a document associated with the transaction. This contribution as a whole lies in the area of excluded matter as a method of doing business, which is matter excluded under s.1(2). The application was refused under s.18(3). The Hearing officer also found that the invention was excluded as a programme for a computer. |
| O/112/12 | GB0709839.5 | Mr Thomas Michael Anderson | Mr A Bartlett | 09 March 2012 | Refused | The decision concerns whether the contribution made by the invention falls within the excluded fields as a scheme, rule or method for playing a game. The invention comprises a word game in which single vowels are added to or subtracted from a word (presented in the form of an anagram) in order to produce longer or shorter dictionary-defined words. The examiner had objected that the claimed invention was excluded under section 1(2)(c) as a scheme, rule or method for playing a game and/or performing a mental act, and/or the presentation of information. The examiner had also informed the applicant that he was unable to see anything in the application which could form the basis of a patentable claim. Applying the Aerotel test, the hearing officer concluded that the contribution made by invention fell solely within excluded matter as it related to the rules for playing the particular game. In addition, upon reviewing the application as a whole the hearing officer concluded there were no possible amendments which could support a patentable claim, since any apparatus used to play the game was already known. Given that the application wholly fell within the 'games' exclusion, the hearing officer saw no need to consider other excluded fields. |
| O/109/12 | GB0802859.9 | Office Add-On Limited | Mr A Bartlett | 08 March 2012 | Refused | The invention related to a method of sending an email in a communications systems in which images (such as company logos) contained within the signature block of an email are converted to html dots. This is so that anti-spam and anti-virus filters do not remove the images from the email or class the entire email as spam. At the hearing the Hearing Officer was asked to consider the scope of the exclusions in relation to the Travaux Preparatoires. It was also put to the Hearing Officer that as the invention concerned image processing, then it must be patentable following Vicom. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and also considered the judgments in Symbian and AT&T & Cvon. After considering the AT&T & Cvon signposts, the Hearing Officer concluded that the invention did not make a technical contribution and refused the application as the invention related to a program for a computer as such. |
| O/099/12 | GB0818032.5 | Forensic Science Service Limited | Miss J Pullen | 05 March 2012 | Refused | The invention relates to a method of analysing samples containing mixed source DNA to establish mixing proportions for the sources and establish likely genotypes for the source. The output of the sample analysis is subjected to a further iterative analysis which involves creating simulated outputs where the contributory factors are known and comparing these to the actual output to see if they match. Each time a better match is acquired this is assumed to be the best match. The method continues until the optimum explanation of the output is acquired. Such information is useful in a variety of legal and law enforcement applications. The hearing officer found that the contribution lay in the field of data processing and related to a computer program as such. The application was therefore refused. |
| O/097/12 | GB0822335.6 | Logined B.V | Mr P Thorpe | 05 March 2012 | Refused | The decision considered whether the invention was excluded under section 1(2). The application relates to a method of generating a “decision tree” to show the decisions taken as well as other factors considered when modeling the performance of oil reservoirs. Applying the four-stage test set out in Aerotel/Macrossan the hearing officer found the invention to relate solely to the presentation of information and to a computer program as such. The hearing officer could find no saving amendments hence he refused the application under section 18(3). |
| O/089/12 | GB0724403.1 | Agilent Technologies Inc | Mr S Brown | 27 February 2012 | Refused | In this decision on the papers the invention related to managing the memory of a mass spectrometer computing system by purging infrequently used data objects when spare memory was running low while still keeping enough information to be able to recreate said objects should they be needed again. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and decided that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter. He also considered the Court of Appeal decision in Symbian and the decision in AT&T & Cvon and concluded that the contribution did not have a relevant technical effect. Further, unlike the contributions in Vicom and Waters Investments (BL O/146/07), it did not result in better measurement data or an improved data processing method. The application was thus refused as no more than a program for a computer as such. |
| O/085/12 | GB0712097.4 | Henri Duong | Mr B Micklewright | 24 February 2012 | Refused | In this decision on the papers, the invention related to a method in which a business enterprise creates a second line of business in the field of banking or insurance in addition to their existing activities which is operated by existing employees, so as to generate further income for the business enterprise. This further income may be re-invested back into the enterprise in relation to the original line of business, for example by modernising machinery. The hearing officer found that the invention related to a method of doing business as such and therefore refused the application. |
| O/083/12 | GB0910305.2 | Net1 Ueps Technologies, Inc | Mr B Micklewright | 24 February 2012 | Refused | The invention related to electronic financial transactions, where instead of using real account numbers, a simulated account number is used for the financial transaction which simulates a conventional account number. The actual account number is incorporated into the simulated account number and may be extracted by a designated financial institution processing facility. The hearing officer found that the invention was excluded from patentability as a program for a computer as such and a method of doing business as such. |
| O/064/12 | GB0904722.6 | The Nielsen Company (US), LLC | Mr B Micklewright | 15 February 2012 | Refused | The application related to a method of identifying images in printed media by using image feature vectors as representations of images to match an image with images in a database. In an amendment proposed at the hearing the applicant’s attorney argued that the invention resulted in a more efficient system for matching the images. The hearing officer however found that the invention claimed in both the claims under consideration at the hearing and in the proposed amendments to these claims related to a program for a computer as such and was therefore excluded from patentability. He therefore refused the application. |
| O/058/12 | GB0910301.1 | Net1 Ueps Technologies, Inc. | Mrs S E Chalmers | 13 February 2012 | Refused | The application is concerned with avoiding identity fraud when conducting electronic financial transactions using magnetic strip or smart cards such as a credit or debit card. According to the invention, verification of the card user’s identity and account(s) is carried out by an independent third party rather than directly with the relevant bank or other financial institution. In use, the user will sign up to the verification service by having his cards read to provide his account details and having his fingerprint scanned to provide an identifier. Following checking of his identity and his accounts, his name, account numbers and fingerprint are then encrypted and stored. When the user wishes to buy something, he will swipe his card through a card reader and scan his fingerprint. These are then encrypted, sent to the verification service and compared with the stored account and fingerprint to confirm his identity before the transaction can go ahead. The Hearing Officer found that the invention claimed was novel but declined to make a finding on whether it involved an inventive step. She went on to apply the four step test set out in Aerotel/Macrossan and found that the contribution made by the invention fell within excluded fields, namely to methods for doing business and to a computer program as such. The application was refused. |
| O/046/12 | GB0901322.8 | Raytheon Company | Mr P Slater | 03 February 2012 | Refused | The invention relates in general to a system for remotely accessing records stored in a distributed database. The system includes a number of federated databases which may be located at separate locations and are interconnected by a network such as the Internet. Remote users can access the system via a conventional web browser. In order to retrieve records from the system, users submit queries via their web browser which include various filtering criteria such as keywords, time or geospatial indicators which can be compared with the contents of records stored within the various databases to extract those records which match the specified criteria. The process of filtering records to find those which match a user’s query is facilitated by the use of a metadata database containing metadata records which represent corresponding records within each of the federated databases but include much less data. By searching the metadata records only, far less data is being processed which enhances the speed by which queries can be executed and data records extracted. Furthermore, user queries are stored in a data event agent which periodically repeats the filtering of metadata records to identify any new records which have been added to the database and any additions or modifications to existing records which meet the original user query. In this way, the user can be supplied with a continuous feed of data records which match their original request. Therefore, if the databases are incomplete or not responding when the initial query is made, any missing or modified data records are supplied to the user as they become available. This means that remote users are no longer required to re-submit their query to obtain any additional records which may become available sometime in the future following their initial request as was the case in prior-art federated databases. The Hearing Officer considered the four-step test in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the Symbian judgment, and having considered the signposts set out in AT&T/CVON, found the contribution to relate to a computer program as such, and having found no technical contribution refused the application under Section 18(3). |
| O/045/12 | GB0915496.4 | Intuit Inc | Dr L Cullen | 03 February 2012 | Refused | Patent application GB0915496.4, entitled “Method and system for generating a dynamic help document”, relates to generating a dynamic help document, which document comprises questions and answers (question-answer pairs) associated with a client-server application. Such a help document provides software users with assistance to understand the features of a computer application and/or how to make optimal use of these features. The questions and answers are pre-existing ones, and relate to those features thought to be most relevant to the largest number of customers using the computer application. The invention lies in ranking each question and answer according to user feedback, so that the questions and answers receiving the most favourable feedback are ranked first. The help document can be continually updated according to the most recent user feedback (hence a “dynamic help document”). Applying the Aerotel/Macrossan test, as modified by Symbian and the AT&T/CVON signposts,, the hearing officer found that the contribution of this invention lay in automatically generating an updated help document at a server using rankings based on user feedback about an existing help document to determine question-answer pairs for inclusion in the updated help document. The invention does not reduce the risk of a problem arising in the computer system itself; rather, it attempts to reduce the risk of an operator, when using an application on the computer, not being able to find a suitable piece of information in a help document as readily as if the dynamic help document were not there. The invention was thus found to be a program for a computer as such, which is matter excluded under s.1(2), and it was refused under s.18(3). |
| O/028/12 | GB1001747.3 | William Kostuj | Mrs C L Davies | 28 January 2012 | Refused | The application relates to the field of golf swing. More specifically, the present invention relates to first developing a limb-only golf grip and golf swing without holding a golf club. And once a consistent grip and swing have been developed a golf club is fitted to that. The Hearing Officer found, on applying the Aerotel/Macrossan test, that the contribution is not technical in nature and simply consists only of excluded subject matter and is no more than a scheme, rule or method of performing, playing a game, a mental act or doing business. The Hearing Officer also found the contribution to be caught under the phrase “among other things” in section 1(2). |
| O/024/12 | GB0821244.1 | Enabled London Limited | Mr S Brown | 26 January 2012 | Refused | The application relates to a system for automatically adapting web pages to provide links from predetermined words to additional material stored on a database. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and decided that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter. He also considered the Court of Appeal decision in Symbian and the decision in AT&T & Cvon and concluded that the contribution did not have a relevant technical effect. The application was refused as no more than a program for a computer as such and, so far as it was not a program for a computer, as the presentation of information as such. |
| O/022/12 | GB0822081.6, GB1104294.2 | Population Diagnostics, Inc. | Mrs S E Chalmers | 25 January 2012 | Refused | The applications relate to a method of identifying a relevant copy number variant (CNV) for a particular phenotype. CNVs are modifications of a genome which result in cells having an abnormal number of copies of a particular region of the genome. Such variations can lead to modifications of gene expression in the cell. It is known in the prior art that CNVs can occur in normal (i.e. healthy) individuals and that certain CNVs are also associated with various diseases/phenotypes. The invention provides a method which can identify CNVs in human (GB0822081.6) or non-human (GB1104294.2) subjects wherein a reference data set is used to eliminate ‘normal’ CNVs identified as being present in a high resolution screen in an individual with a phenotype, thereby identifying a CNV which causes a particular phenotype. The Hearing Officer applied the structured Windsurfing/Pozzoli approach and found that the inventions claimed in both applications lacked an inventive step. She went on to apply the four step test set out in Aerotel/Macrossan and found that the contribution made by the inventions in both applications fell within excluded fields, namely to methods of performing a mental act and to a computer program as such. Both applications were refused. |
| O/018/12 | GB0624556.7 | General Electric Company | Mr H Jones | 20 January 2012 | Allowed | The application relates to a method of predicting the behaviour of a process using a computer program. It was accepted that predicting the behaviour of a process is excluded under section 1(2) as being a computer program as such, unless the prediction is used for control or diagnostic purposes. Amendments to the claims were proposed which would add a step to evaluate or optimise the process based on the prediction. Support for the proposed amendments was identified in the description. The Hearing Officer referred the application back to the examiner for continued processing. |
| O/007/12 | GB0812495.0 | Joshua Tabin | Mr A Bartlett | 13 January 2012 | Refused | The invention relates to an interface as used in a price comparison tool having multiple selection criteria, and particularly to automatic adjustment of these selection criteria. It provides for relative weighting values to be persisted with after adjustment to a point of equality. E.g. if one of the selection criteria is “maxed out” to 100%, forcing each of the others to 0%, and then reduced again, the other selection criteria will be automatically increased in proportion to their levels relative to each other before having been forced to 0%. Following the Aerotel steps, as modified by Symbian, and the AT&T/CVON signposts, the Hearing Officer found that the claimed invention was excluded from patentability as a computer program not providing a saving technical effect. |
| O/466/11 | GB0906015.3 | Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. | Dr J E Porter | 21 December 2011 | Allowed | The invention lies in the field of image management and is concerned with creating a searchable image database by automatically identifying various characteristics of an image to enable descriptive words to be assigned to that image. The examiner had objected that the invention was no more than a program for a computer. The hearing officer found that the contribution of the invention was defined by the claimed steps of processing image data, which resulted in the generation of a particular type of representation of an image which allowed automatic allocation of words representing the colour, size and location of regions of the image. These steps were not processing the image data to get out, at the end, a better quality image, but were processing the image data to achieve a different outcome - namely, a representation of the image suitable for the assignment of words. However, he went on to find that the reasoning of the EPO Technical Board of Appeal in Vicom nonetheless applied, and so these were technical image processing steps. Thus the contribution related to a “technical process” within the meaning of Vicom. It followed that the claims were directed to more than a computer program as such. The application was remitted to the examiner. |
| O/437/11 | GB0900967.1 | Barrodale Computing Services Ltd. | Mr S Brown | 06 December 2011 | Refused | The application relates to a method of compressing databases. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and decided that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter. He also considered the Court of Appeal decision in Symbian and the decision in AT&T & Cvon and concluded that the contribution did not have a relevant technical effect. The application was refused as being a program for a computer as such. |
| O/423/11 | GB0723276.2 | Really Virtual Company Ltd. | Mr S Brown | 28 November 2011 | Refused | The application relates to a method of allowing a user access to tailored services on the web whilst maintaining their anonymity. This is achieved by placing the user in one or more sets, the size and nature of these sets being such as to maintain anonymity while also allowing certain user characteristics to be determined. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and decided that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter. He also considered the Court of Appeal decision in Symbian and the decision in AT&T & Cvon and concluded that the contribution did not have a relevant technical effect. The application was refused as being a program for a computer as such. |
| O/415/11 | GB0616189.7 | VB UK IP Limited | Miss J Pullen | 23 November 2011 | Allowed | The invention relates to a method and apparatus for determining distance of visual fixation based on respiratory data. The basis of the invention is a theory that pressure from the respiratory system is exerted on the rear of the eyeballs and can influence visual capability of an individual. The invention can be used to control items which use auto focus, for example cameras and other optical equipment, games and weapons. The Hearing Officer considered the evidence and submissions provided by the applicant with regard to sections 1(2)(a), 4(1) and 14(3). The Hearing Officer found the application to lack industrial applicability and sufficiency and so refused the application under Section 18(3). |
| O/386/11 | GB0812901.7 | Forensic Science Service Limited | Mr B Micklewright | 09 November 2011 | Refused | The invention related to DNA profile matching. A search profile is generated by analysing a sample containing DNA to identify two or more allele identities for each of one or more loci. The search profile is then compared against a database of stored profiles in a way in which at least one of the allele identities is given a limited range of values in the search profile in order to find matches which fall within that range. The hearing officer found that the contribution lay in the field of data processing and related to a program for a computer as such. The application was therefore refused. |
| O/373/11 | GB0902255.9 | Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. | Dr J E Porter | 27 October 2011 | Allowed | The invention concerns image analysis and selection, and in particular concerns a computer-implemented method of selecting an appropriate image for a particular document from a number of ranked images created by analysing colour properties. The examiner had objected that the invention was no more than a scheme, rule or method for performing a mental act. In light of the recent Patents Court judgment in Halliburton Energy Services Inc’s Applications, in which the mental act exclusion was construed narrowly, the Hearing Officer found that the present invention was not a mental act because it was implemented on a computer. The application was remitted to the examiner. |
| O/367/11 | GB0807932.9 | Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation | Mrs C L Davies | 26 October 2011 | Refused | The application is a method of matching data records from different sources that relate to the same entity. The method works by receiving clusters of data records from each source. Each record comprises a data item and an indication of the similarity between other records for the same entity. The records from each data source are then compared and the results of the comparison are used to decide which records relate to the same entity. The Hearing Officer considered the four-step test in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of Symbian and found the contribution to relate to a computer program as such, and having found no technical contribution, refused the application under Section 18(3). |
| O/327/11 | GB0622187.3 | Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba | Miss J Pullen | 26 September 2011 | Refused | The invention relates to a computer implemented design support tool. The tool supports the editing of layout design data, which has been classified into several discrete areas, which appears to be analogous to a database. The tool also allows the designer to create and edited the layout using simple universal diagrams rather than 2D or 3D CAD representations, but then allows the design output to be converted to 2D or 3D CAD representations. The Hearing Officer considered the four-step test in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the Symbian judgment. The Hearing Officer found the contribution lay solely within the excluded fields, found no technical effect and so refused the application as a computer program under Section 18(3). |
| O/320/11 | GB0820591.6 | Logined B.V | Mr P Thorpe | 13 September 2011 | Refused | The invention relates to optimising the extraction of oil from a reservoir. In particular it relates to an improved method of modeling the reservoir using a combination of fine and coarse grids. The hearing officer found that the invention was excluded as a computer program. The application was therefore refused. |
| O/319/11 | GB0521685.8 | Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. | Mrs C L Davies | 12 September 2011 | Refused | The application concerns the selective reading of data from a memory tag, using a stored user profile. The memory tag may be used in a variety of applications from museums to identifying allergy information associated with an item in a shop. The applicant’s arguments that the system provided a more efficient system, with lower bandwidth requirements, and that it amounted to a new arrangement, using a new memory structure were not found to be persuasive, through the application of the AT&T/CVON signposts. The hearing officer found, on applying the Aerotel/Macrossan test that the contribution lay solely within the excluded field of a computer program and refused the application. |
| O/315/11 | GB0711264.2 | Microsoft International Holdings B.V. | Mr B Micklewright | 09 September 2011 | Refused | The invention related to providing thumbnails and summaries of videos and displaying these thumbnails and summaries in a results page following a query. A user may select a matching video and a summary of the video is then streamed to the user’s client device. The hearing officer found that the application related to a program for a computer as such and therefore refused the application. |
| O/284/11 | GB0917351.9 | Compurants Ltd | Mrs S E Chalmers | 11 August 2011 | Refused | The application relates to a computer-controlled interactive food and/or drink ordering system that can generate and print the bill at the request of the customer. In conventional restaurants, when requesting a bill, customers usually need to attract a waiter which can take some time to do. There may also be a further delay before the waiter presents the bill. The invention provides a system which includes a computer controlled projector that projects images onto the surface of a table, the images including an image of an icon or button, that, when selected by a customer operating an interface device, causes a message to be sent to an electronic point of sale system (EPOS) to generate and, if desired, print a bill for that customer. The Hearing Officer applied the four part test set out in the Aerotel and Macrossan judgment and found the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter. She also considered the Court of Appeal decision in Symbian and the decision in AT&T & Cvon and concluded that the contribution did not have a relevant technical effect. The application was refused as being a program for a computer as such. |
| O/283/11 | GB0917353.5 | Compurants Ltd | Mrs S E Chalmers | 11 August 2011 | Refused | The application relates to a computer-controlled interactive food and/or drink ordering system that can prompt a customer to place an order. In conventional restaurants, a waiter will present a customer with a menu and then return a few minutes later to take his order. On some occasions, the customer may not have made up his mind and the waiter may need to return a number of times to prompt the customer before an order is placed which causes an undesirable delay. The application is therefore concerned with encouraging customers to “get on with it” in the context of a “one-hour turnaround restaurant”. The invention provides an ordering system which includes a computer controlled projector that projects images of a user interface onto the surface of a table, the images including selection options for ordering. The system is operable to prompt the customer when it has determined that the customer has not interacted with the ordering system for a defined period of time. The Hearing Officer applied the four part test set out in the Aerotel and Macrossan judgment and found the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter. She also considered the Court of Appeal decision in Symbian and the decision in AT&T & Cvon and concluded that the contribution did not have a relevant technical effect. The application was refused as being a program for a computer as such. |
| O/282/11 | GB0917357.6 | Compurants Ltd | Mrs S E Chalmers | 11 August 2011 | Refused | The application relates to a computer-controlled interactive food and/or drink ordering system for direct use by a customer where the prices are varied according to demand. It is known for restaurants and bars to vary the prices of food and/or drink. For example, the application refers to a “happy hour” as a time when prices would be varied. The invention provides a system which includes a computer controlled projector that projects prices for food and/or drink items onto the surface of a table, that, when selected by a customer operating an interface device, leads to selected items being ordered at the displayed prices. The prices are varied automatically according to demand. The Hearing Officer applied the four part test set out in the Aerotel and Macrossan judgment and found the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter. She also considered the Court of Appeal decision in Symbian and the decision in AT&T & Cvon and concluded that the contribution did not have a relevant technical effect. The application was refused as being a program for a computer as such and a method for doing business. |
| O/189/11 | GB0907334.7 | Logined BV | Mr H Jones | 08 June 2011 | Refused | The application relates to a method for accessing data stored in a database in such a way that avoids the need to append access permissions to the data or to data tables stored therein. The method also allows access entitlements to be determined in a relational database on the basis of workflows rather than on individual tables.The Hearing Officer found that the invention relates to a program for a computer and lacks the necessary technical contribution required for patentability. The application was refused. |
| O/170/11 | GB0802302.2 | Halliburton Energy Services Inc | Mr P Thorpe | 19 May 2011 | Refused | The application related to a method of designing drill bits used to form wellbores in subterranean formations. The method seeks to optimise various drilling characteristics by using computer simulation of the interaction of the designed drill bit and the formation being cut. The Hearing Officer, following the reasoning in Halliburton Energy Services, Inc. v Smith International (North Sea) Ltd & Ors, found that the claimed invention, as a matter of substance, related to excluded matter namely a scheme for performing a mental act and a computer program. The application was refused. |
| O/164/11 | GB1008621.8 | The Court of Edinburgh Napier University | Mr B Micklewright | 16 May 2011 | Refused | The invention related to carrying out digital forensic analysis of a digital computing system by collecting and analysing collected system call data so as to detect attack, intrusion or misuse of the system. Sequence matching techniques similar to those used in the bioinformatics field for protein and DNA sequence matching analysis are used to detect matches between a test sequence of system calls stored in a database and a sequence derived from the collected system call data so as to determine whether events of interest have taken place. The hearing officer found that the actual contribution was a program for a computer as such and a mathematical method as such and therefore lay solely in the excluded fields. He therefore refused the application. |
| O/163/11 | GB0919376.4 | New Voice Media Ltd | Mr P Mason | 13 May 2011 | Allowed | The application relates to a method and apparatus for use in a call handling system which extracts information from a received call. Based on said extracted information, information not primarily intended for call handling is searched and further information based on the results of the search are passed to an ‘agent’. Applying the Aerotel/Macrossan test the hearing Officer found that the invention did not relate to a computer program or the presentation of information as such and thus did not fall within excluded matter. The claims are thus allowable and the application was remitted to the examiner for marking in order for grant. |
| O/157/11 | GB0907503.7 | Oracle International Corporation | Dr J Houlihan | 12 May 2011 | Refused | The invention in question relates to a data approvals system and method for managing data during the process of approving a transaction in a computerized system. The applicants argued that the invention provides a flexible and more reliable computer which functions at a high level of architecture above low level data handling applications and that this makes a technical contribution to the operation of a computer. The Hearing Officer applied the four point “Aerotel/Macrossan” test, as modified by Re. Symbian, and took account of the “signposts” for determining technical contribution detailed in Re. AT&T Knowledge Ventures & CVON Innovation’s Ltd. He found that the invention did not provide an impact on the technical infrastructure of the computer and therefore would not make a computer technically more flexible or more reliable. He held that the invention lay solely in the field of excluded subject matter and refused the application as relating to a computer program, as such, under section 1(2) of the Act. |
| O/150/11 | GB0800217.2 | Direct TV Pty Ltd | Mr G Griffiths | 04 May 2011 | Refused | The application relates to the production of flexible media presentations, in which the content of at least some of the presentation can be varied as the media presentation is displayed on a device such as a CRT or LCD screen. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test, as modified by Symbian, and decided that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter. He also concluded that the contribution did not have a relevant technical effect. The application was refused as being a program for a computer as such. |
| O/131/11 | GB0515996.7 | Fitzgerald Stenneth Sylvester Blake | Mr B Micklewright | 14 April 2011 | Refused | The invention concerned a computer implemented management system suitable for use as a medical and/or dental practice management system which makes it easier for users of the system (including medical and/or dental practices) to share information with each other. The hearing officer applied the Aerotel test and concluded that the actual contribution lay solely in the excluded fields and was therefore excluded from patentability as a program for a computer as such and as a method for doing business as such. |
| O/120/11 | GB0617836.2 | Q Software Global Limited | Miss J Pullen | 29 March 2011 | Refused | The application relates to a security system for preventing unauthorized users from gaining access to computer programs and data sources. The system uses a set of templates defined by business role or job function, one or more of which can be assigned to any user to define their access rights. When more than one template is assigned to a user, their security rules can conflict. Conflicting rules can be identified and altered if necessary. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test, as modified by Symbian, and decided that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter. She also concluded that the contribution did not have a relevant technical effect. The application was refused as being a program for a computer as such. |
| O/097/11 | GB0500914.7 | Vodafone Group PLC | Mrs C L Davies | 09 March 2011 | Refused | The application relates to a mobile communication device and a method for updating information for a mobile communication device. During operation of a mobile communication device, a user may activate a communication session between the device and a network where information required by the user is downloaded. The device has a cache for storing the downloaded information wherein each information item has an associated time limit. The time limit is used to determine whether a stored information item requires revalidation/refreshing. When the time limit has been exceeded the device automatically revalidates/refreshes the information item when access to the network is available. The Hearing Officer found, on applying the Aerotel/Macrossan test, that the contribution lay solely within the excluded field of a business method and a computer program. The communication device has a “user agent” implemented by the device’s processor through a computer program to control the decision making process to revalidate/refresh the information. The Hearing Officer subsequently refused the application. |
| O/080/11 | GB0523735.9, GB0802299.8, GB0802300.4 | Halliburton Energy Services Inc | Mr P Thorpe | 25 February 2011 | Refused | The applications related to methods of designing drill bits used to form wellbores in subterranean formations. The methods sought to optimise various drilling characteristics by using computer simulation of the interaction of the designed drill bit and the formation being cut. The Hearing Officer, following the reasoning in Halliburton Energy Services, Inc. v Smith International (North Sea) Ltd & Ors, found that the claimed inventions in each of these applications, as a matter of substance, related to a scheme for performing a mental act. Two of the applications were also found to be excluded as computer programs. The issue of whether adding a manufacturing step to the claimed inventions would take the applications outside of excluded matter was discussed. All three applications were refused. |
| O/049/11 | GB0724938.6 | Claria Corporation | Dr J E Porter | 16 February 2011 | Refused | The invention concerns use of a media server to control and adapt media content supplied to a user. The server receives media content from a website and a cable television broadcast source, and distributes it to a user via one or more media outlets. The content is categorised and also the user’s navigation behaviour is monitored. The categorisation and user navigation information is used to create and update a user profile, and commercial information based upon the user profile is provided. The hearing officer followed the steps set out in Aerotel in order to determine whether the invention was excluded from patentability. Having considered the various features of the claimed invention and their interaction, he concluded that the alleged contribution made by the invention lay not in the media server or the receiving of media content, but in the categorisation of that content, monitoring of user navigation information, and the use of the categorisation and navigation information to generate and update user profiles - based upon which commercial information was provided. He found that this contribution fell solely within excluded matter, as it was no more than a mental act and a program for a computer and, to the extent that it relating to the provision of commercial information, a method for doing business. |
| O/045/11 | GB0800337.8 | Dell Products L.P. | Miss J Pullen | 14 February 2011 | Refused | The application relates to an improved system and method for producing environmental operational analysis of a proposed data handling system by generating thermal information from configuration information of the component(s) of the proposed system The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and decided that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter. She also considered the Court of Appeal decision in Symbian and the decision in AT&T & Cvon and concluded that the contribution did not have a relevant technical effect. The application was refused as being a program for a computer as such. |
| O/044/11 | GB0425250.8 | Adaptive Business Systems Ltd | Mr S Brown | 09 February 2011 | Refused | The application relates to a better way of viewing data from two databases and a better way of incrementally migrating data between two databases. Both of these aspects are enabled by a certain method of modelling information on databases. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and decided that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter. He also considered the Court of Appeal decision in Symbian and the decision in AT&T & Cvon and concluded that the contribution did not have a relevant technical effect. The application was refused as being a program for a computer as such. |
| O/439/10 | GB0723964.3 | Protecting Kids the World Over (PKTWO) Limited | Mr B Micklewright | 23 December 2010 | Refused | The invention concerned a system for monitoring an electronic communication on the internet such as a chat room, e.g. being used by a child. Words and phrases in the electronic communication were matched with those stored in a dictionary in a hash table. An aggregate alert level was generated based on these matches, and a message was generated and sent to a user (e.g. a parent) if the alert level reached a certain level. The user could then send back a response indicating that one of a number of actions be taken in response to that alert. The hearing officer applied the Aerotel test and concluded that the actual contribution lay solely in the excluded field and was therefore excluded from patentability as a program for a computer as such and a mental act as such. |
| O/436/10 | GB0423100.7 | Sony United Kingdom Limited | Mr H Jones | 21 December 2010 | Refused | The application relates to a new search functionality in peer-to-peer networks by using a new data structure for storing content files and their associated description information (metadata). The invention is described as moving away from the prior art approach of storing descriptive information alongside each individual content file or by having descriptive information forming part of the individual content file itself. Instead, the invention requires that content files are stored in folders containing an arbitrary number of associated files and for description information to be stored as a separate description file within the same content folder. This arrangement of data allows for multiple related content files to be stored as a single object, i.e. in the same content folder, together with a single description file that is separate from each of the content files. The Hearing Offices addressed the issue of whether the invention relates to a computer program as such by answering the question of whether it reveals a technical contribution to the art. In the light of guidance provided by the UK Courts and by the EPO Boards of Appeal, the Hearing Officer concluded that no technical contribution is made and that the application should be refused. |
| O/429/10 | GB0805153.4 | Trane International Inc. | Mrs S E Chalmers | 14 December 2010 | Refused | The application relates to build-to-order manufacture of information handling systems considering spare download capacity for each system. The method determines an efficiency parameter for a factory and loads additional content onto the information handling systems during build-to-order based on said efficiency parameter. The applicant asserted that there was a technical effect in determining the efficiency parameter and therefore that the application should not be excluded. The Hearing Officer found that the invention, on applying the Aerotel/Macrossan test, that the contribution lay solely within the excluded field of a business method, mental act and a computer program for applying the business method. The method determines the efficiency parameter without any degree of sensing and is merely calculated from a number of inputted parameters. The Hearing Officer therefore refused the application. |
| O/430/10 | GB0813248.2 | Dell Products L.P. | Mrs C L Davies | 13 December 2010 | Refused | The application is concerned with a graphical user interface (GUI) to access information about the condition of a building automation system (BAS). Building automation systems are typically used to manage the physical environment of a building for example to manage and control heating, lighting and security. The invention provides a summary page which includes information on the status of alarms which can be customized by the user to present the alarms limited to those areas that show the greatest variation between the observed condition and the specified setpoint. The Hearing Officer applied the four part test set out in the Aerotel judgment and found the invention to be excluded as the presentation of information as such. Applying Gemstar, she considered the prioritising of an alarm list was effectively the rearrangement of information and thus did not provide the required technical contribution. |
| O/424/10 | GB0600191.1 | i2 Technologies US, Inc | Mrs S E Chalmers | 07 December 2010 | Refused | The application is concerned with a computer-implemented system and method for supply chain planning in which the user is provided with a visual representation of the supply chain network and a high level plan display. These are interactive and the user can switch between them - for example to determine the effect of a change in production target on the supply chain or to investigate a stock supply problem. The results can then be used to generate a new plan. The Hearing Officer applied the four part test set out in the Aerotel/Macrossan judgment, found the invention to be excluded as a computer program and as a method of doing business as such, and refused the application. She did not consider the invention provided a technical contribution of the type found in Symbian. In particular, a computer with the program of the present application did not provide, as a matter of practical reality, a “faster and more reliable computer”. |
| O/422/10 | GB0515362.2 | Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. | Mrs S E Chalmers | 06 December 2010 | Refused | The application relates to a computerized method of creating and laying out a printed document whose content could be tailored to a selected group of customers. The first step is to decide what items - such as text, graphics or photographs - are to be inserted into the document for the target group of customers. This is done by accessing the customer database to determine the relevant items which are then inserted into a document template to create suggested layouts. The final layout is selected according to pre-determined criteria and the document is then printed out. The Hearing Officer applied the four part test set out in the Aerotel/Macrossan judgment, found the invention to be excluded as a computer program and as presentation of information as such, and refused the application. She did not consider the invention provided a technical contribution of the type found in Symbian. In particular, a computer with the program of the present application did not provide, as a matter of practical reality, a “faster and more reliable computer”. |
| O/421/10 | GB0509900.7 | Hewlett Packard Development Company. | Mr P Slater | 06 December 2010 | Refused | The invention relates to editing tools which can be used to prepare documents for high volume printing applications such as the preparation and printing of newspapers. In such cases, it is often desirable to share documents, for example, advertisements and/or news articles across a number of different publications with different in-house styles and layouts. This process is known as “syndication” and often requires the text to be re-formatted. However, problems occur when articles are shared or syndicated between different publications when it becomes necessary to alter the attributes of the text associated with that article e.g. its structure, style or geometry in order to match the in-house style of the publication and enable it to be inserted in the appropriate place or copyhole. The invention itself provides an improved editing tool which is capable of identifying and labeling document portions or text, tagging the document portion with information (metadata) defining the content, structure and layout of the associated text which can then be exported in a platform-independent format for use in a different editing tool to generate the corresponding article in another publication. The Hearing Officer considered the four-step test in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the Symbian judgment, and found the contribution to relate to a computer program as such, and having found no technical contribution refused the application under Section 18(3). |
| O/417/10 | GB0604820.1 | I2 Technologies US, Inc. | Miss J Pullen | 01 December 2010 | Refused | The methods, systems and computer programs described in the application are concerned with the management of a supply chain and particularly with controlling access of trading partners in the supply chain to particular stages or "states" of the supply chain, in particular the trading partner can view the transaction in a given state, the state being for instance when a buyer is tendering or later on when a buyer is committed. The trading partners in the supply chain could be customer or supplier and manufacturer, buyer or a third-party. The administrator of the supply chain management system, a trading partner or a vendor can use the user interface to enter information into a state model which defines how particular trading partners can interact with the transaction state, the state model either being an existing stored example or one that can be customised by the trading partner. In coming to her decision the Hearing Officer considered the decision in Symbian and analysed the claims using the Areotel/Macrossan four step test. The Hearing Officer found that the contribution related to a method of doing business, that the contribution was not technical and was therefore excluded under Section 1(2)(c) of the Act. |
| O/416/10 | GB0604769.0 | I2 Technologies US, Inc. | Miss J Pullen | 01 December 2010 | Refused | The application relates to a custom application builder for supply chain management. In particular a user wanting access to supply chain related data may build a "custom" application using data in one or more particular "modules", respective modules relating to subsets of data in the supply chain such as purchase order data, inventory data, forecasting data, invoice data, and management data. Upon selecting the modules they need from a database of modules, the user can customise how the data may be displayed, the specification showing particular forms of tabulation of data. In coming to her decision the Hearing Officer considered the decision in Symbian and analysed the claims using the Areotel/Macrossan four step test. The Hearing Officer found that the contribution related to a computer program, method of doing business and presentation of information and that the contribution was not technical and was therefore excluded under Section 1(2)(c) of the Act. |
| O/415/10 | GB0604622.1 | I2 Technologies US, Inc. | Miss J Pullen | 01 December 2010 | Refused | The application relates generally to a program based supply chain management. Here the word "program" is not used directly in relation to a computer program but the program is in this sense is rather a definition of a relationship between trading partners, e.g. such as a manufacturer and a vendor. The invention essentially restricts access to data in the system to those who need to see it or action it, i.e. those defined by a particular trading partner program. The trading partner program may additionally be defined by other factors such as the location, the nature of the item to be traded or taxonomy. In coming to her decision the Hearing Officer considered the decision in Symbian and analysed the claims using the Areotel/Macrossan four step test. The Hearing Officer found that the contribution related to a method of doing business and was excluded under Section 1(2)(c) of the Act. |
| O/409/10 | GB0421284.1 | Advanced Forensic Solutions Limited | Miss J Pullen | 29 November 2010 | Refused | The application relates to an information analysis arrangement utilised in order to identify unexpected links, risk and uncertainty in and between data in a data set. The application acknowledges the problems of time, scale and utility which are said to prevail in the analysis of even small data sets. The proposed invention uses a static model of the key relationships between the major information sets within a problem domain and the cardinality of these relationships; these are compared to threshold levels of legitimacy to generate an alert or warning. These alerts or warnings are starting points for knowledge discovery involving more detailed analysis of the identified individual cases. The proposed arrangement and methodology can be utilised to provide an information analysis arrangement with respect to a wide range of situations such as insurance fraud or identity theft. In coming to her decision the Hearing Officer considered the decision in Symbian and analysed the claims using the Areotel/Macrossan four step test. The Hearing Officer found that the invention related to a computer program and that it did not make a ‘technical contribution’ required to prevent exclusion under Section 1(2) of the Act. |
| O/403/10 | GB0625808.1 | ePLUS Capital, Inc | Rebecca Villis | 24 November 2010 | Refused | The application relates to a method for the provision of a server-less office architecture in which computing services are performed at a centralized hosting facility rather than at a user level. For a specified business function at least one business objective and at least one business constraint that must be satisfied by the server-less architecture are defined. These objectives and constraints are then mapped to candidate IT component selection and performance criteria and the candidate IT components are ranked according to how they match the selection criteria. A set of the best ranked candidate IT components satisfying the performance criteria are then used to validate a server-less office architecture. The applicant asserted that the contribution provided a technical effect, and that there were technical considerations in selection of the candidate IT components. The Hearing Officer held that, on applying the Aerotel test, the contribution is in the excluded field of a business method. The method operates to determine which IT candidate components should be included in a server-less architecture according to business rules. Any improvement is achieved by the step of selecting IT candidate components meeting those rules. The Hearing Officer therefore refused the application. |
| O/402/10 | GB0517644.1 | eSpeed, Inc | Mrs C L Davies | 19 November 2010 | Refused | The application relates to apparatus for carrying out electronic trading. It comprises workstations and a server interconnected by a communications network. The workstation can, via the communications network, send bid and offer commands to the server for storage there and for distribution to the other work stations. A bid or offer command stored at the server may subsequently be changed by the relevant user sending, from his workstation an appropriate change command to the server. The workstation can also send trading commands, via the communications network, to the server. When a trading command is received by the server, it executes a trade on the basis of that trading command and the value specified in the bid or offer command to which it relates. The applicant has recognised that signals sent over communications networks inherently suffer network delays and as a consequence, by the time the trading command has traversed the network, the value of the bid or offer to which it relates may have changed from the original value, on the basis of which the trading command was generated, to a new value. In consequence, the trade will be executed on the basis of the wrong value. The claimed invention provides a means for preventing such incorrect execution by notifying a trader to the fact that the value of a bid or offer has changed and provides the trader with an opportunity to submit, modify or cancel the trade command. In this way, the trader is safeguarded against trading on an erroneous price. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan 4 step test and found that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter and related to a business method implement through a computer program. The Hearing Officer did not agree with the applicant that the invention addressed a technical problem associated with user/system/network delays and found the contribution to be non-technical. |
| O/384/10 | GB0812561.9 | Intuit Inc. | Mr S Brown | 04 November 2010 | Refused | The application relates to a method for upgrading software by monitoring usage and enabling the use of a simpler program where suitable. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and decided that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter. He also considered the Court of Appeal decision in Symbian and the decision in AT&T & Cvon and concluded that the contribution did not have a relevant technical effect. The application was refused as being a program for a computer as such. |
| O/361/10 | GB0710637.0 | The Honey Pot Trust | Mr H Jones | 21 October 2010 | Allowed | The application relates to a system which allows the occurrence of a transaction and the events forming part of the transaction to be verified by separate recording of audio/visual information relating to the transaction. The audio/visual information is captured by a camera and stored in a subsidiary data store of a central store that is accessible only to satellite data processing systems associated with the particular subsidiary store. The hearing officer found that the invention did not relate to a computer program or a method of doing business as such, and that it did involve an inventive step. The application was referred back to the examiner to deal with minor matters of construction prior to sending to grant. |
| O/365/10 | GB0619385.8 | Phorm UK Inc | Mr S Brown | 20 October 2010 | Refused | The application relates to a method for a service provider to target content delivery to a network node based on information requests from the network node. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and decided that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter. He also considered the Court of Appeal decision in Symbian and the decision in AT&T & Cvon and concluded that the contribution did not have a relevant technical effect. The application was refused as being a program for a computer as such. |
| O/347/10 | GB0917486.3 | Intuit Inc | Mr H Jones | 07 October 2010 | Refused | The application relates to an application programming interface (API) that intercepts commands from the middle tier or business logic to a persistence tier or data store in a three tier programming model. On intercepting the command, the API identifies an entity (such as a specific data table) that is affected by the command and uses this to identify a function in the middle tier that is associated with both the entity and the command. An instruction is then sent to the middle tier to execute the function, and if the API receives confirmation that the function has been executed in the middle tier then the original command is executed at the persistence tier. The Hearing Officer found that the invention related to a computer program and that it did not make a “technical contribution” required to prevent exclusion under section 1(2) of the Act. In coming to his decision the Hearing Officer considered the decision in Symbian and found that the claims did not provide a better, more reliable or efficient computer. He also considered the signposts of Lewison J in AT&T/CVON and found that the programming model did not constitute an architecture and that the application was circumventing rather than solving the problem of lack of communication between development teams. In summary, any contribution lay within the application and that the underlying computing system was nothing more than a general purpose computing system. |
| O/326/10 | GB0426775.3 | Hewlett-Packard Development Company | Mr P Thorpe | 22 September 2010 | Refused | The invention is concerned with preparing paper and electronic variable data documents for publishing. More specifically the invention seeks to ensure a uniformity of styles across a number of associated parts of the document. Hence if for example the font size of text inserted into a part of the document on a later page needs to be reduced in order to enable it to fit within the space allocated for it, then the font size of associated text on early pages will be similarly reduced to ensure a consistent font size. The Hearing Officer found that even though the invention required less computer processing and memory than other likely solutions to the problem, it is merely an improved method of data processing. It did not provide a technical contribution and was therefore excluded as a program for a computer. The application was refused. |
| O/321/10 | GB0610518.3 | Dell Products LP | Miss Ceri Witchard | 16 September 2010 | Refused | The application relates to an automated method for placing orders for replacements to legacy information handling systems. The method operates to identify systems within an overall system that should be replaced, for example because they are too slow, have insufficient memory, have limited networking capability or are otherwise aged. The applicant asserted that there were technical considerations in determining which systems to replace and that therefore the application should not be excluded. The Hearing Officer held, on applying the Aerotel test that the contribution was in the excluded field of a business method and a computer program for applying that business method. The system operated to apply a number of rules to determine which systems should be replaced and automated the ordering process to obtain replacement systems. Any improvement in the computer system was achieved by the step of purchasing new systems. The Hearing Officer therefore refused the application. |
| O/261/10 | GB0621081.9 | Fisher-Rosemount Systems Inc | Mr P Slater | 23 July 2010 | Refused | The invention relates to a “graphical runtime interface” for use in a process control system which can be used on a single workstation to create and configure display panels more specifically to define the information to be displayed in various panels, to control the layout and scale of the panels which can then be transferred across the network to other workstations ensuring the various displays are consistent. The information displayed on individual workstations is controlled in accordance with content information generated by the interface and associated runtime applications. In addition, the graphical runtime interface includes a runtime workspace application which sits between the operator and the various functional or runtime applications resident on the workstation, effectively encapsulating them and preventing the operator from inadvertently executing commands which may affect their operation or that of the underlying operating system. The application does this by disabling the operating systems system keys, shortcuts or combinations of other keys on the keyboard which previously would have invoked specific software functions. For example, in a Windows™ based operating environment, the runtime workspace application may disable access to the Windows keyboard shortcuts including, for example, Run Dialog (WinKey+R), Minimise all (WinKey+M), or switch to another application (Alt-tab) etc. This is said to provide a more robust, consistent and reliable process control system. The hearing officer considered the four-step test in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the Symbian judgment, and found the contribution to relate to computer program for configuring displays across a network and which prevents the operator from invoking functions by accidentally pressing keys on the keyboard which may adversely affect the underlying operating system. It does this not at a technical level but by disabling keystrokes and/or combinations of keystrokes. The Hearing Officer could find no technical contribution and so refused the application under Section 18(3). |
| O/260/10 | GB0620323.6 | Fisher-Rosemount Systems Inc | Mr P Slater | 23 July 2010 | Refused | The invention relates to a graphical user interface for use in a process control system for displaying the status of various alarms associated with devices within the system to an operator. A typical process control system, for example, as used in a chemical or petroleum processing plant consists of a large number of field devices including sensors for measuring temperature, pressure and flow rates throughout the system. When an abnormal condition is detected by one or more of the sensors an alarm is typically generated at the operator workstation. Often, as a result of chain reactions with the plant, the operator may be presented with a large number of alarms at the same time, generating what is referred to as an “alarm flood” which is difficult to deal with. Furthermore, it is extremely useful for the alarm indicators to present “contextual” information about a specific alarm to the operator. For example, the identity of the device generating the alarm, its location, the date and time at which the alarm was activated are often included as part of the display. The user interface allows the operator to modify, configure and manipulate alarm indicators to show alarm priority, age and location, as well as providing additional contextual information showing the relationship between various alarms within the display. The hearing officer considered the four-step test in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the Symbian judgment, and found the contribution to relate to a user interface for displaying information related to alarms in a process control system including information showing the relationship between different alarms. The Hearing Officer could find no technical contribution and so refused the application under Section 18(3). |
| O/256/10 | GB0620326.9 | Fisher-Rosemount Systems Inc | Mr P Slater | 21 July 2010 | Refused | The invention relates to the creation of graphical user interfaces and displays within a process control system. The invention itself provides an integrated graphical user interface which includes a common graphical display editor that can be used to create common graphical elements or objects representing various sections of the plant and individual devices within the plant. These graphical elements are then stored in a centralised “object” database which can also be used to store information linking the various elements to their corresponding hardware devices within the plant. Individual displays appropriate to the user can then be created at their own workstations using combinations of the graphical elements stored in the object database to build up a picture of the plant including the various links required to establish connections between the elements and their corresponding devices. The hearing officer considered the four-step test in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the Symbian judgment, and found the contribution to relate to computer program for creating and configuring a particular type of graphical user interface in a particular way. The Hearing Officer could find no technical contribution and so refused the application under Section 18(3). |
| O/188/10 | GB0611578.6 | Darran Bird | Mr S Brown | 08 June 2010 | Refused | The application concerns a method for determining the optimum length of the shaft of a golf club by measuring the lengths of various body parts of a golfer standing in an upright position. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and decided that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter. Having decided that the invention was excluded the Hearing Officer did not consider the issues of Inventive step and sufficiency in any depth. |
| O/174/10 | GB0525899.1 | Marathon Oil Company & Compagnie Generale de Geophysique | Mrs C L Davies | 27 May 2010 | Refused | The application relates to a method of determining the values of designated rock and fluid parameters in a subterranean geologic volume and it can be used in prospecting for oil and gas. Predicted values of rock and fluid properties are assigned to a model of the subterranean geology which then calculates a predicted seismic response of the modelled geological volume to produce synthetic data. This synthetic data is then compared with real seismic data. The predicted values which were originally assigned to model are adjusted to reduce the difference between the synthetic and real seismic data. When the difference is minimized or reduced, the adjusted predicted values are considered to be indicative of the real values of rock and fluid parameters. The applicant argued that the method was a form of indirect measurement of rock and fluid parameters rather than a method of improving a model for predicting those parameters. The hearing officer found that the contribution fell solely within excluded matter and the claims were rejected as a mathematical method and a program for a computer, as such, under sub-sections 1(2)(a) and 1(2)(c) respectively. |
| O/117/10 | GB0710612.3 | Forensic Science Service Limited | Mr H Jones | 16 April 2010 | Allowed | The application relates to a method of modeling a process of analyzing DNA in a biological sample and in then optimising various parameters of the process. The description clearly sets out a context in which the ready availability of biological samples for DNA analysis, for example in the field of forensic science, is very often limited, which means that the degree of optimisation of the chemical process in order to yield any meaningful result is limited. The application describes in detail the modeling assumptions and probability functions used to simulate the complete DNA consideration process, and explains the relationships between various input and output parameters which allow the whole process to be simulated and, more importantly, optimised through the use of a computer program. The Hearing Officer found that while the claims included steps that could be said to fall within one or more of the categories of excluded matter, the contribution as a whole did not. The contribution was assessed as an improved chemical process for considering a DNA containing sample, which happens to include as a key component a computer model to derive certain parameters for optimizing the chemical process. What the inventors have contributed is not solely a new mathematical method or a computer program for implementing that method, but is the practical application of a mathematical model of an electro-chemical process in order to improve the success rates of the electro-chemical process when conducted in practice. The application was remitted to the examiner for further search and examination. |
| O/114/10 | GB0604281.6, GB0604288.1 | Research in Motion Limited | Miss J Pullen | 13 April 2010 | Refused | The systems and methods disclosed provide a conversion capability to transform page-based applications of a web service to component based applications which use messages to access functions of the web service. The component application produced is transferred to a device and may be converted to native code for execution or interpreted by a software module or operating system on the device. The Hearing Officer considered the four-step test in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the Symbian judgment, and found the contribution to relate to methods and systems for converting applications via a computer program. The Hearing Officer could find no technical contribution and so refused the applications under Section 18(3). |
| O/100/10 | GB0619051.6, GB0803000.9 | Avaya Technology LLC | Mr P Slater | 31 March 2010 | Refused | The invention in both of these applications relates to the transfer of data between databases, and the modification of database structures in an Automatic Call Distribution (ACD) system. The hearing officer considered the four-step test in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the Symbian judgment, and found the contribution in both applications to relate to computer program for the transfer and manipulation of data. The Hearing Officer could find no technical contribution and so refused the application under Section 18(3). |
| O/089/10 | GB0613207.0 | Suunto OY | Mr S Brown | 15 March 2010 | Allowed | The application relates to a portable device for measuring the movements of a sportsman, typically a golfer, which manipulates the data to produce a single number that is characteristic of the repeatability of the movements. Applying the Windsurfing/Pozzoli test the claims were found to be inventive. Applying the Aerotel/Macrossan test the contribution was found not to fall solely within excluded matter. The claims are thus allowable and the application was remitted to the examiner. |
| O/085/10 | GB0805992.5 | Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba | Miss J Pullen | 10 March 2010 | Refused | The invention relates to method and apparatus for producing source code for a second processor from a source code for a first processor, where the source code for the second processor maintains the ingenuity i.e. optimisation, comment sentence, macro declarative sentence and the like associated with the source code for the first processor. This is advantageous to a user as it facilitates debugging, cope with a specification change etc. The Hearing Officer considered the four-step test in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the Symbian judgment, and found the contribution to relate to a method and apparatus for translating software code. The Hearing Officer could find no technical contribution and so refused the application under Section 18(3). |
| O/036/10 | GB0509201.0 | ARM Limited | Mr P Slater | 01 February 2010 | Refused | The invention relates to the simulation and testing of programmable devices and associated programs designed to run thereon. Modelling the device and associated programs in this way helps to identify potential problems early on in the development life-cycle so that they can be overcome relatively easily and inexpensively by modification of the original design. Being able to design and simulate the programs in parallel with the development of the hardware upon which they will be executed also reduces the overall development time and makes the process more efficient. The applicant itself produces a wide range of modelling tools which enable users to produce so called “cycle accurate” models for simulating microprocessors on a general purpose computer. These models can be used, not only to model the microprocessor itself, but also the program code designed to run thereon. However, problems arise when the simulated model of the microprocessor and/or the program code being subject to simulated execution contain “bugs” which need to be identified and fixed. Difficulty arises in that when the simulation is being run and produces unexpected results, it is often difficult to locate whether the problem lies in the simulated model of the hardware or within the program code. The invention provides a new technique whereby the behaviour of the simulated device and the program code can be tracked simultaneously and the location of any bugs can be more readily identified. This is achieved by an arrangement in which the so called “host debugger” and “target device debugger” are synchronised, and a “debug interface” is provided for enabling access to stored information regarding the state of resources being used by the host simulation and the state of the device being simulated. The hearing officer considered the four-step test in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the Symbian judgment, and found the contribution to relate to computer program for locating bugs in simulation software. The Hearing Officer could find no technical contribution and so refused the application under Section 18(3). |
| O/021/10 | GB0716959.2 | Idan Zuta & Marc Zuta | Mr H Jones | 22 January 2010 | Refused | The application relates to a number of a number of interrelated methods which may be used to assist in and/or automate parts of the patent application process. These methods address a variety of perceived difficulties in the process, including improving the dialogue between inventors and their agents, precisely defining and representing inventions in drawings and text, guiding inventors into choosing an appropriate IP protection strategy based on the available choices and associated costs, submitting revised patent applications in the light of search results from a preliminary filing, efficiently searching the prior art, structuring patent applications so they can be efficiently processed, tracking the changes made to patent applications during processing, filing applications more quickly, filing applications in foreign languages, and ensuring that applications meet the requirements of patentability. The Hearing Officer found that the various aspects of the invention wholly related to one or more of a business method, a mental act, as computer program, and presentation of information, and decided to refuse the application. |
| O/003/10 | GB0814628.4 | Fisher-Rosemount Systems, Inc. | Mr B Micklewright | 12 January 2010 | Refused | GB0814628 was divided from GB0621082.7, an application which was refused in decision BL O/228/09 as relating to a program for a computer as such. In both cases the inventions relate to accessing process control data, in particular to methods by which an operator is able to develop and add functionality to their own applications at any time without the need to rewrite or compile the control system software. The invention claimed in the present application relates to using a client object based on pre-generated and user-generated partial classes to access process control data. The user-defined class elements can access process control data via the pre-generated class elements. Applying the Aerotel/Macrossan test, the hearing officer found that the invention did not make a technical contribution and related to a program for a computer as such. The application was therefore refused. |
| O/392/09 | GB0700745.3 | Greycon Limited | Miss Ceri Witchard | 17 December 2009 | Refused | The application concerned a method for generating optimised schedules for a manufacturing system. The claimed invention lay in the balancing of a number of cost factors to produce schedules which acceptably minimised costs. Applying the Aerotel test, the hearing officer held that the contribution to human knowledge lay solely within the field of business methods. In considering whether the contribution was technical contribution made by the invention the hearing officer held that using a computer program to perform the business method did not make a technical contribution. She rejected the application as being a scheme, rule or method of doing business and a computer program. |
| O/372/09 | GB0516638.4 | Halliburton Energy Services, Inc. | Mr S Brown | 25 November 2009 | Refused | The application relates to a method for designing a roller cone drill bit comprising locating bearings at minimal moment centres along axes of rotation of various cone assemblies. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and decided that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter. He also considered the decision in Halliburton Energy Services Inc. v Smith International (North Sea) Ltd. and concluded that the claims could be saved by the addition of a suitable manufacturing step. The application was remitted to the examiner on the condition that the applicant files new claims. If the applicant does not do so within 2 months from the date of this decision the application will be refused as being a method for performing a mental act or a mathematical method as such. |
| O/366/09 | GB0814365.3, GB0814366.1 , GB0814367.9 | Fisher-Rosemount Systems, Inc | Mr B Micklewright | 20 November 2009 | Refused | These applications were divided from GB 0621389.6 (“the parent application”), an application which was refused in decision BL O/214/09 as relating to a program for a computer as such. The inventions all relate to a method of modifying process control data by converting it first to a “format-neutral” data format, in these cases an extensible mark-up language (XML) format. The format-neutral data can then be converted into a variety of further formats for editing purposes. The parent application and divisional applications all related to various aspects of this method. Applying the Aerotel/Macrossan test, the hearing officer for the present applications found that the arguments made by the hearing officer in the case of the parent application also applied to each of the inventions claimed in the three divisional applications and therefore for each application the contribution made by the respective invention fell solely within excluded matter. The applications were therefore refused as being programs for computers as such. |
| O/298/09 | GB0409402.5 | WMS Gaming Inc. | Mr J Elbro | 25 September 2009 | Refused | The application concerned a gaming machine of the “fruit machine” type for wagering games with a number of mechanical reels and a video display. The innovation asserted in the application was that this video screen will display different animations depending on the level of award a player has won from the combination of symbols shown on the reels, improving the player’s experience. The hearing officer held that when considering the contribution made by the invention, in accordance with the Aerotel test, it was necessary to consider the contribution to human knowledge, not simply the differences from the prior art. He therefore held that the claimed invention was did not solely relate to a presentation of information, although some aspects of it could be so characterized. However, he found that there was no technical improvement to the gaming machine, instead an improved game was implemented on standard gaming technology. He thus rejected the application as being for a scheme rule or method for playing a game and/or the presentation of information as such. |
| O/288/09 | GB0600352.9 | Emerson Process Management Power & Water Solutions, Inc. | Mr H Jones | 22 September 2009 | Refused | The application relates to a computer implemented method for converting control routines in a process control system from ladder logic into Boolean logic. The Hearing Officer applied the “technical contribution” test recently endorsed by the Court of Appeal in Symbian and found that the contribution made by the invention was not technical. The invention was found to be a program for a computer as such and the application was refused. In view of this, the issue of whether the invention relates to a mental act was left undecided. |
| O/285/09 | GB0608420.6 | Roke Manor Research Limited | Mr P Slater | 18 September 2009 | Refused | The invention relates to a method of searching for user-specified strings of characters, or keywords in an input data stream using a finite state machine based on an Aho-Corasick algorithm. User-specified keywords are used to construct the state machine in the form of a “tree” structure having branches representing each of the user’s keywords into which the input data stream is then fed. The machine providing an output each time a match is detected between any of the specified keywords and the input data. In prior-art systems, problems arise when the user adds to, deletes or changes the keywords in some other way which requires the state machine to be rebuilt or recompiled. This can take a considerable amount of time and processing power to achieve particularly, as in the prior-art, where the state machine is said to be built-up in a “breadth first” manner when the addition of new keywords requires all of the state transitions to be updated. For large keyword sets the computational cost of updating the entire structure is often excessive, requiring significant buffering of data or delays in processing the input data stream which may result in the loss of data, and may even prevent the structure from being updated whilst online. The application provides a new method of constructing an Aho-Corasick state machine wherein the tree structure is built-up in a “depth first” manner, a branch at a time corresponding to any new keywords added by the user and requires only those states or nodes associated with that branch to updated. This allegedly requires no buffering or loss of data and enables real-time online processing of the input data stream. The hearing officer considered the four-step test in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the Symbian judgment, and found the contribution to relate to computer program for transferring and converting data between various schema or formats. The Hearing Officer could find no technical contribution and so refused the application under Section 18(3). |
| O/277/09 | GB0811727.7 | Fisher-Rosemount Systems Inc | Miss J Pullen | 10 September 2009 | Refused | The invention relates to a process control safety system and in particular to a method and apparatus for generating a script for use in writing data in a process control safety system. The claims address the interface provided to the user when changes to safety systems are required. A script is automatically generated as a result of one (or a number) or parameters selected by the user, and a confirmation is required by the user before the command is sent. By virtue of the invention, the applicant has enabled what would otherwise be a manual process to be automated. The hearing officer considered the four-step test in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of the Symbian judgment, and found the contribution to relate to a computer program for automatically generating a script. The Hearing Officer could find no technical contribution and so refused the application under Section 18(3). |
| O/136/09 | GB0419580.6, GB0419583.0, GB0724070.8, GB0724072.4 | Fisher Rosemount Systems, Inc | Mr A Bartlett | 18 May 2009 | Allowed | The applications relate to reconfiguring a process control system associated with a process plant. The hearing officer considered the four-step test in Aerotel/Macrossan in the light of Symbian, and found the contribution to be inexorably linked to the control of a process plant. All four applications were therefore found to make a technical contribution and thus to relate to non-excluded subject matter. The hearing officer also found that the claims were in need of amendment so as to clearly define the invention, and warned of possible conflict between respective parent and divisional applications. The applications were referred back to the examiner to resolve the clarity issues and to complete his assessment of whether they comply with the remaining parts of the Act. |
| O/107/09 | GB0424655.9 | Nokia Corporation | Mr A Bartlett | 24 April 2009 | Allowed | The application is concerned with developing the functionality of a mobile phone, particularly the networking functionality (i.e. the network connections) of the phone. In the invention, software applications for mobile phones are developed by connecting a desktop PC to a mobile phone via a network connection. A software developer uses the desktop PC to direct the software development process by inputting commands at the desktop PC which are then transferred to the phone in order to call individual modular software elements stored on the phone. In particular, the software developer uses the desktop PC to compose scripts that are transferred to the phone which execute under the control of a command interpreter and which combine two or more of the software modules resident on the phone. In applying the Aerotel/Macrossan [2007] R.P.C. 7 test for excluded matter, the Hearing Officer found that the invention does provide a technical contribution, as required by Symbian [2008] EWCA Civ 1066, and that consequently the invention does not fall solely within excluded matter. In particular, it was held that whilst the invention may be implemented in software it overcomes technical problems inherent in the prior art such that it is more than a program for a computer as such. It was also held that the invention did not relate to method for performing a mental act as such. The Hearing Officer went on to find that the claims considered at the hearing were not supported by the application as filed. The applicant was given an opportunity to amend the application in order for it to comply with the act and rules. |
| O/312/08 | GB0414654.4 | January Patents Limited | Mrs S E Chalmers | 20 November 2008 | Allowed | The invention concerns an electronic point of sale (EPOS) apparatus for the purchase of mobile telephone credits for use in a retail environment. As the specification explains, the purchase of mobile telephone credits or “top ups” is normally processed by a specifically dedicated terminal unit. When a customer wishes to buy credit, the operator must move from their main point of sale terminal, operate the dedicated terminal unit to obtain the required amount of “top up” in the form of a voucher and then return to the main point of sale terminal to process the payment by the customer for the “top up”. This is time-consuming for both operator and customer. The invention provides a combined EPOS machine which includes a software control module, which is operable to provide mobile telephone credit and invoice the purchase of that credit, and the hardware to print not only the “top-up” voucher but also the receipt for the “top up” voucher together with any other retail purchases. Applying the Aerotel test, the Hearing Officer considered that the contribution in the amended claims involved the combination of software and hardware and did not relate solely to a computer program nor a method for doing business. Applying the Windsurfing test (as modified by Pozzoli), she found the invention to be inventive. Allowing the application, she remitted it back to the examiner for further examination. |
| O/238/08 | GB0426501.3 | Fisher-Rosemount Systems, Inc | Mr R C Kennell | 13 August 2008 | Allowed | For the more effective operation of multivariable process control systems, the invention modelled the process as two or more single-input single-output (SISO) models and selected a subset of the SISO models for adaptation on the basis of detected process conditions. The hearing officer held the claims novel over a citation in which, although a subset of the SISO controllers in a process was adapted, there was no modelling the process as a plurality of SISO models. Amended system claims did not merely claim adaptation of the process model but also included the process control aspects. On excluded matter, the hearing officer applying the Aerotel test held that this made a contribution which went beyond merely using a plurality of SISO models in a multivariable process control system, did not relate solely to excluded matter and was technical in nature. Since the method claims did not fully reflect this contribution, he allowed the applicant a period to submit further amendments. |
| O/224/08 | GB0524528.7 | Telefonaktiebolaget L M Ericsson | Mr P Slater | 07 August 2008 | Allowed | The application relates to vehicle navigation systems, more commonly known as Satellite navigation systems, which use signals from the Global Positioning System (GPS) to locate the vehicle and present maps and instructions to the driver via dashboard mounted displays, text and audio messages. In particular, the invention relates to the generation and display of information and messages, in an appropriate format and via an appropriate medium, for guiding the driver to their desired destination. The system as described is able to compile information from a variety of sources including information from one or more sensors associated with the vehicle, for example, a speed sensor or a fuel level sensor, information regarding the proposed destination, road conditions and weather etc. together with any personal preferences set by the user. This information is then used to generate a message specification which controls the display of information to the driver including the selection of appropriate maps, text and voice prompts. The idea being to present the driver with relevant information in the most appropriate format and media available given a particular set of conditions. For example, should the speed sensor indicate that the vehicle is being driven at high speed, the information presented via the map may be reduced to avoid distracting the driver. Furthermore, the system is able to prioritise messages so that those with a higher priority are either overlayed onto existing media e.g. maps, or interrupt any existing text or voice messages. For example, if it is desired to output a voice message having a low priority when there is already a voice message being broadcast, the new message may be converted into a text message. Applying the Aerotel test, the hearing officer held that subject to some clarifying amendments, the claims were not excluded under section 1(2) and remitted the application to the examiner for further consideration as to novelty and inventive step. |
| O/202/08 | GB0506607.1 | NEC Corporation | Mr R C Kennell | 15 July 2008 | Allowed | The claims related to a method and apparatus for deciding the tilt angle of antennas in radio communication system. The examiner considered that the claims needed to be restricted to actual use in controlling antennas to avoid exclusion as a computer program, but the hearing officer (considering the mathematical method exclusion also) held that on the basis of VICOM (T 208/84), Astron Clinica [2008] RPC 14, Halliburton v Smith [2006] RPC 2 and Institut Francais &c (BL O/201/03) a step of outputting an optimal tilt angle for use in controlling the tilt angle sufficed to tether the claims to a patentable invention. The hearing officer also accepted that a proposed claim to a computer program product for implementing the method would not be open to objection under section 1(2). |
| O/191/08 | GB0600581.3 | Smith International Inc. | Mr H Jones | 03 July 2008 | Allowed | The invention related to a method of manufacturing a drill bit by designing the drill bit and then manufacturing it in accordance with the design. Only the design step were described or claimed in any detail: this involved simulating the performance of the drill bit whilst drilling through an earth formation, displaying the result graphically, varying a design parameter of the drill bit, and repeating the process until a performance characteristic was optimised. Following Halliburton and Cappellini/Bloomberg, the hearing officer held that this was patentable. The hearing officer then applied the test laid down in Aerotel / Macrossan, and determined that the step involved in three of the four independent claims, that the adjustment was in accordance with the graphical display, was inventive. Claim 35 was held to lack this feature, and to be obvious in the light of the prior art cited. The application was therefore remitted to the examiner for further amendment. |
| O/173/08 | GB0619968.1 | Intel Corporation | Mr P Marchant | 23 June 2008 | Allowed | The invention concerns the optimisation of computer program instructions for use in a multiple parallel processor. Optimisation consists of identifying two or more suitable candidate instructions within a sequence and replacing them with a “single instruction with multiple data” (or “SIMD”) instruction. The hearing officer found claims to the software, or the software implemented in conventional hardware to be excluded, but accepted that the applicant might be able to draft allowable claims to a new hardware arrangement. The applicant was invited to file amended claims and the application was remitted to the examiner to continue prosecution. |
| O/149/08 | GB0602813.8 | IGT | Mr R C Kennell | 23 May 2008 | Allowed | The invention related to a gaming apparatus and method in which 2D image data was converted into a 3D video image and displayed on a non-planar 3D screen. The examiner had objected that the contribution of the invention was excluded under the above categories, but (although it was not apparent from the specification as originally drafted) the applicant argued that the invention lay in a technical improvement in the 3D image by virtue of its correction for image distortion, brightness distortion and colour aberration when displayed on a non-planar screen. The hearing officer asked the examiner to conduct a further search to determine whether this was conventional and gave the applicant an opportunity to comment on the results. In response the applicant filed amended claims in which a controller was programmed to correct for all three of the above defects. Applying the Aerotel test, the hearing officer held that these claims were not excluded under section 1(2) and remitted the application to the examiner for further consideration as to novelty and inventive step. |
| O/010/08 | GB0324644.4 | Nav Canada | Mr R C Kennell | 16 January 2008 | Allowed | The invention automated the extraction of operational data in air traffic control (ATC) systems for use in business systems by using stored procedures in an SQL database server located outside a secured ATC system for one-way transfer of data over a secure network (eg including a firewall) from another SQL database forming part of the secured system. Applying the Windsurfing/Pozzoli test for inventive step, the hearing officer held that the skilled person would combine specialist knowledge of ATC data handling systems with advice from a computer programmer or network engineer; such a person would be aware of the possibility of transferring data between SQL databases over secure links, but would not without hindsight regard it as obvious to put an SQL database server into the secured ATC system in the first place. On excluded invention, applying the Aerotel test the hearing officer considered that the contribution of the invention was not a computer program as such, since the insertion of an SQL server into the secured ATC system and its connection to another SQL server outside that area was not solely a matter of computer programming, and was technical in nature. The hearing officer remitted the application for further prosecution. |
| O/350/07 | GB0424542.9 | The Wandsworth Group Limited | Mr R C Kennell | 28 November 2007 | Allowed | The invention was a digital system allowing direct bedside access to services and medical records over a single network by both hospital patients and staff. Applying the test in Aerotel [2006] EWCA Civ 1371, the examiner had considered the contribution over the prior art to be excluded as a computer program or business method because it appeared to be nothing more than a trivial programming step or a decision to provide a particular type of service. However, in the light of amendments proposed at the hearing and subsequently, the hearing officer considered the contribution to be the allowance of direct access by a user at a head end of the system, which included a user server/personal computer at the bedside; this did not lie solely in excluded areas and was technical. The hearing officer therefore remitted the application to the examiner to continue substantive examination. |
| O/330/07 | GB0402956.7 | Autonomy Corporation Ltd | Mr H Jones | 07 November 2007 | Allowed | The application relates to a method for generating links related to the content of an active window displayed on a computer screen and for embedding an icon representing these links within, for example, the title bar of the window. The application also discloses how a summary of one of these links is displayed when a cursor is moved over it, and how more than one icon representing different categories of links may be embedded into the active window. Applying the four step test set out in Aerotel/Macrossan, the hearing officer found that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within the meaning of a program for a computer and the application was refused. The hearing officer found that the addition of an icon conveniently positioned for accessing relevant documents extended beyond the nature of the information displayed or the manner in which it is presented, and that the invention was not excluded as mere presentation of information. |
| O/307/07 | GB0602514.2 | Fisher-Rosemount Systems, Inc | Mr R C Kennell | 17 October 2007 | Allowed | n a control system intended to maintain the necessary functional isolation between process control and safety networks in a process plant, a user workstation was coupled to the networks via a shared communication network so that the user could configure the operation of both the process control and safety systems by assigning modules to elements within the appropriate networks and downloading them via the shared network. Claims were made to both a configuration system and to a process plant including the configuration system, the workstation, and the networks. Following Aerotel/Macrossan [2006] EWCA Civ 1371, the hearing officer found (i) that the contribution of the configuration system claims related solely to a computer program, but (ii) that the contribution of the process plant claims, which included the shared communications network by which the advantages of the invention were obtained, did not relate solely to excluded matter. Contribution (i) having failed the third step of the Aerotel/Macrossan test, it was necessary in the fourth step only to consider whether contribution (ii) was technical in nature; the hearing officer held that it was. He remitted the application for further examination on the basis of the process plant claims. |
| O/226/07 | GB0313122.4 | CFPH L.L.C. | Mr R C Kennell | 10 August 2007 | Allowed | In apparatus for electronic trading a spreadsheet application calculated a series of trading commands from incoming market data and stored them in a queue to be sent at predetermined intervals to an electronic trading system (ETS); since the commands might not be synchronised with market conditions by the time they were transmitted they were updated before transmission in response to the receipt of further market data. Applying the test in Aerotel/Macrossan [2006] EWCA Civ 1371, the hearing officer accepted the applicant’s argument that the contribution of the invention included an aspect related to the field of communication handling (which the applicant had derived by stripping the trading aspects from the claims and reducing them to the underlying supposedly technical features), but thought that it could not be divorced from trading. He accepted that these underlying features solved a physical problem caused by the limitations of the computer at the ETS end of the transmission so that the contribution did not relate solely to either a business (trading) system or method or a computer program, even though the invention was dependent on programming to update the commands. The contribution having passed the third step of the Aerotel/Macrossan test, the hearing officer, applying the fourth step, held the contribution to be technical in nature because it overcame the physical limitations of the ETS computer. He accordingly held that the invention was not excluded under section 1(2). |
| O/150/07 | GB0514161.9 | Fisher-Rosemount Systems Inc | Mr J Elbro | 01 June 2007 | Allowed | The application related to a process control system which used program objects corresponding to components of the process to provide information to an operator, in terms of an overview of the process operation. The hearing officer followed the four-step approach to the assessment of patentability under section 1(2) approved by the Court of Appeal in Aerotel/Macrossan [2006] EWCA Civ 1371 in determining whether the invention was excluded from patentability. He held that claims to a workstation with the objects stored on it were excluded as claims to a computer program, but claims to a process control system comprising the objects were held not to be excluded provided the claims were clarified to indicate the nature of the information provided. |
| O/148/07 | GB0324470.4 | Fisher-Rosemount Systems Inc | Mr J Elbro | 01 June 2007 | Allowed | The application related to a process control system which used program objects corresponding to components of the process to provide information to an operator. The hearing officer followed the four-step approach to the assessment of patentability under section 1(2) approved by the Court of Appeal in Aerotel/Macrossan [2006] EWCA Civ 1371 in determining whether the invention was excluded from patentability. He held that claims to a workstation with the objects stored on it were excluded as claims to a computer program, but claims to a process control system comprising the objects were held not to be excluded. |
| O/135/07 | GB0329367.7 | WesternGeco Limited | Mr H Jones | 23 May 2007 | Allowed | The application relates to a method of processing seismic data or other geophysical data captured at irregular points over a multi-dimensional domain. The invention finds particular application in seismic imaging, which is described in the specification as the process of determining one or more parameters relating to the physical properties of the earth’s interior from seismic measurements at the earth’s surface. The application discloses a data processing technique aimed at improving the quality of the seismic image. The Hearing Officer considered the recent Court of Appeal judgment in Aerotel/Macrossan and decided that the actual contribution made by some of the claims fell solely within the meaning of a mathematical method and a program for a computer. He also reviewed the EPO Board of Appeal’s decision in Vicom and found that certain other of the claims extended beyond being a mathematical method per se. The application was referred back to the examiner for further processing. |
| O/010/07 | GB0207020.9 | Sony United Kingdom Limited | Mr R C Kennell | 10 January 2007 | Allowed | The application claimed a hierarchical data structure for communicating metadata describing the content of at least one shot of information material between a network of devices interconnected in a data communications network. Applying the test for patentability in Aerotel/Macrossan [2006] EWCA Civ 1371, the hearing officer held that the contribution made by the invention was the provision of a data structure comprising a particular hierarchical structure, and that, since it formed part of the instructions whereby a computer in the network was enabled to interrogate, retrieve and communicate metadata, it was excluded under section 1(2) as relating to a computer program as such. It was therefore unnecessary under Aerotel/Macrossan to consider whether the contribution was technical in nature, even if the data structure had the potential to bring about a technical effect. However, the hearing officer was prepared to allow an alternative set of claims relating to a data communications network incorporating the data structure. |
| O/264/06 | GB0309205.3, GB0309206.1 | Micron Europe Limited | Mr H Jones | 20 September 2006 | Allowed | The applications relate to the use of parallel processing in active memory applications. Following the CFPH approach, the Hearing Officer was able to identify an advance in the art that lay outside the description of an invention in the sense of Article 52 of the EPC. However, he could find no support for such an advance in the claims as currently filed. The Hearing Officer gave the applicant a further two months in which to submit amended claims. |
| O/252/06 | GB2392279A | Sun Microsystems, Inc. | Mr S Probert | 06 September 2006 | Allowed | An environment for a virtual machine configured to execute instructions specified in two different instruction sets, one of which is the conventional Java® Bytecode instruction set and the other is a reduced set of virtual instructions that can nevertheless represent the complete set of operations than can be performed by the JAVA Bytecode instruction set. The Hearing Officer found that the claims, when interpreted in the light of the description, were clear. He also decided that the claims did not relate to a program for a computer as such, for reasons stated in a related decision (O/057/06). However, he concluded that this application was for the same invention as a related application (GB 2391980) and that the Comptroller should not grant this application as the related application had already been found in order for grant. The applicant requested the exercise of the Comptroller’s discretion to extend the expired rule 34 period on the grounds that the Office had not made it clear that the double grant objection was still outstanding when the rule 34 period expired. The Hearing Officer agreed, and the period was extended. |
| O/198/06 | GB0105616.7 | Touch Clarity Limited | Mr A Bartlett | 19 July 2006 | Allowed | The claims concern a controller for controlling a system to carry out one of a range of candidate actions so that an objective function of the system is optimized. A candidate action is selected so as to minimize the growth in regret. This was taken to mean that the system selects the next candidate action by balancing previous experience of performed actions with a degree of exploration of other candidate actions. The Hearing Officer held that the correct approach was the one originally formulated by Mr Peter Prescott QC in CFPH LLC's Application [2006] RPC 5 and broadly endorsed by a number of subsequent High Court judgments, namely, identify the contribution and ask whether it falls solely within the excluded areas. The invention was felt to lie in an optimization process which, following the reasoning in Vicom and Halliburton, was not of itself patentable, but could form the basis of a patentable claim if suitably tied to a technical application i.e. controlling a robot. However, the Hearing Officer found that at least some of the claims were bad as they encompassed both excluded and non-excluded subject matter. |
| O/066/06 | GB0228084.0 | ARM Limited | Mr H Jones | 14 March 2006 | Allowed | The application relates to an optimised complier of application code in a data processing apparatus. The examiner argued that the new and non-obvious advance as per the CFPH approach lay entirely in a method for performing a mental act or an improved computer program. The hearing officer found that the ability to modify the compilation process in response to performance data determined by an embedded trace macrocell was sufficient to demonstrate an advance in technology beyond the strict interpretation of a mental act or computer program. The application was referred back to the examiner for it to put in order for grant. |
| O/057/06 | GB2391980 | Sun Microsystems, Inc | Mr S Probert | 02 March 2006 | Allowed | According to the application, the conventional Java Bytecode instruction set has more than 220 instructions, and there is a significant amount of redundancy (or overlap) between some of these instructions. The invention provides a reduced set of Bytecode instructions that can nevertheless effectively represent the complete set of operations performed by the conventional Java Bytecode instruction set. The Hearing Officer applied the two-stage test from CFPH, and concluded that the said advance was both new and inventive under the description an invention in the sense of Article 52 (EPC). He accepted that the second step of the two-stage test must involve a consideration of whether the advance involves a technical effect, not least because this is part of the test used by the Patents Court in a number of recent judgments. Although he accepted that the invention would probably be implemented using a computer program, the Hearing Officer concluded that the invention was not about how that computer program would be structured or how it would be written, but with what the program would be required to do. The program was merely a tool, provided as the most convenient means of implementing the invention. |
| O/292/04 | GB0025696.6 | ARM Limited | Mr S Probert | 23 September 2004 | Allowed | This application concerned a simulator for simulating the operation of a pipelined microprocessor. Each stage of the pipeline is modelled by a piece of software that takes data from an input register, operates on it in such a way as to replicate the function of the hardware stage that is being modelled, and then loads the result into an output register. At the end of each simulated clock cycle, the data from each stage is transferred from each output register to the input register of the next stage ready for the next clock cycle. Thus for every stage in the pipeline, the simulator has to execute a COPY instruction in order to transfer data from each stage to the next. The invention in this case involves locating all of the input registers in one data storage area, and all of the output registers in another data storage area. Then the simulator only has to switch the two storage areas around (eg. by exchanging two pointer values) in order to effectively COPY all of the output registers to the corresponding input registers of the next stage in a single operation. The Hearing Officer concluded that this invention did involve a technical contribution not simply because it produced a faster simulator, but because the fundamental construction of the simulator had been modified. He described it as a technical improvement in the construction and operation of a simulator a 'neat' technical solution to a technical problem. |
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