throbber
UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
`
`BEFORE THE PATENT TRIAL AND APPEAL BOARD
`
`
`
`
`
`Boku, Inc. and Boku Account Services, Inc.
`Petitioners
`
`v.
`
`Xilidev, Inc.
`Patent Owner
`
`Patent No. 7,273,168
`Filing Date: October 8, 2004
`Issue Date: September 25, 2007
`Title: POINT-OF-SALE BILLING VIA HAND-HELD DEVICES
`
`
`
`Covered Business Method Review No. ______
`
`
`
`
`

`
`Page
`
`
`
`I.
`
`II.
`III.
`
`Table of Contents
`
`
`
`MANDATORY NOTICES UNDER 37 C.F.R. § 42.8(A)(1) ........................................ 1
`A.
`Real Parties-ln-lnterest under 37 C.F.R. § 42.8(b)(1) ..................................... 1
`B.
`Related Matters under 37 C.F.R. § 42.8(b)(2) ................................................ 1
`C.
`Lead and Back-Up Counsel under 37 C.F.R. § 42.8(b)(3) .............................. 1
`D.
`Service Information ......................................................................................... 2
`E.
`Power of Attorney ............................................................................................ 2
`PAYMENT OF FEES - 37 C.F.R. § 42.203 ................................................................ 2
`REQUIREMENTS FOR COVERED BUSINESS METHOD REVIEW UNDER
`37 C.F.R. § 42.304 ..................................................................................................... 3
`A.
`Grounds for Standing under 37 C.F.R. § 42.304(a) ........................................ 3
`B.
`The ‘168 Patent is a “Covered Business Method Patent” ............................... 3
`C.
`Claims 1-23 are Not Directed to a “Technological Invention” ......................... 5
`D.
`Identification of Challenge under 37 C.F.R. § 42.304(b) and Statement
`of Precise Relief Requested ........................................................................... 6
`SUMMARY OF THE ‘168 PATENT ........................................................................... 7
`A.
`Brief Description of the ‘168 Patent ................................................................ 7
`B.
`Person of Ordinary Skill in the Art ................................................................. 10
`CLAIM CONSTRUCTION UNDER 37 C.F.R. § 42.304(B)(3) ................................. 10
`A.
`“Completing the Transaction Request” and “Completing the
`Transaction” .................................................................................................. 11
`“Point-Of-Sale” .............................................................................................. 12
`B.
`CLAIM 17 OF THE ‘168 PATENT IS UNPATENTABLE UNDER (PRE-AIA)
`35 U.S.C. § 112, SECOND PARAGRAPH .............................................................. 13
`A.
`Legal Standard for Definiteness .................................................................... 13
`B.
`Claim 17 is Indefinite – Ground 1 .................................................................. 13
`VII. CLAIMS 1-16 AND 18-23 OF THE ‘168 PATENT ARE UNPATENTABLE
`UNDER 35 U.S.C. § 102 AND/OR § 103 ................................................................. 20
`A.
`Prior Art ......................................................................................................... 21
`
`IV.
`
`V.
`
`VI.
`
`
`
`
`
`-i-
`
`
`
`

`
`Table of Contents
`(continued)
`
`Page
`
`
`
`B.
`
`C.
`D.
`E.
`
`Claims 1-5, 7-16, 18 and 20-23 Are Anticipated by Demoff – Ground 2
`and (Alternative) Ground 3 ............................................................................ 23
`Claim 19 Is Obvious over Demoff – Ground 4 .............................................. 50
`Claim 6 Is Obvious over Demoff in view of Gerson – Ground 5 ................... 51
`Claims 1-11 and 20-23 Are Unpatentable over Gerson in View of
`Wronski – Ground 6 ...................................................................................... 51
`Claims 12-16 Are Anticipated by Gerson – Ground 7 ................................... 70
`Claims 18 and 19 Are Anticipated by Gerson – Ground 7 and
`(Alternative) Ground 8 ................................................................................... 76
`VIII. CONCLUSION ......................................................................................................... 80
`
`
`F.
`G.
`
`
`
`
`
`-ii-
`
`
`
`

`
`List of Exhibits
`
`
`
`Exhibit 1001: U.S. Patent No. 7,273,168 to Linlor (“the ‘168 patent”)
`Exhibit 1002: File History of the ‘168 Patent
`Exhibit 1003: Declaration of Dr. Michael Shamos (“Shamos Dec.”)
`Exhibit 1004: U.S. Patent No. 6,456,984 to Demoff et al. (“Demoff”)
`Exhibit 1005: International Publication No. WO 01/95546 to Gerson (“Gerson”)
`Exhibit 1006: U.S. Patent Publication No. 2003/0101137 (“Wronski”)
`Exhibit 1007: European Patent Application No. EP 1065634 to Van Moer et al. (“Van Moer”)
`Exhibit 1008: Complaint filed in Xilidev, Inc. v. Boku, Inc. and Boku Account Services, Inc. et
`al., Case No. 3:13-cv-02793-DMS-NLS
`Exhibit 1009: File Wrapper for U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/510,649
`
`
`
`
`
`-iii-
`
`
`
`

`
`
`
`TABLE OF AUTHORITIES
`
`Page(s)
`
`Cases
`In re Donaldson Co.,
`16 F.3d 1189 (Fed. Cir. 1994) ......................................................................................... 15
`Exxon Research and Eng’g Co. v. United States,
`265 F.3d 1371 (Fed. Cir. 2001) ....................................................................................... 13
`In re Katz Interactive Call Processing Patent Litig.,
`639 F.3d 1303 (Fed. Cir. 2011) ....................................................................................... 16
`Noah Sys. Inc. v. Intuit Inc.,
`675 F.3d 1302 (Fed. Cir. 2012) ................................................................................. 15, 16
`Personalized Media Commc’ns v. Int’l Trade Comm’n,
`161 F.3d 696 (Fed. Cir. 1998) ......................................................................................... 13
`Seal-Flex, Inc. v. Athletic Track and Court Constr.,
`172 F.3d 836 (Fed. Cir. 1999) (Rader, J., concurring) .................................................... 15
`In re Van Geuns,
`988 F.2d 1181 (Fed. Cir. 1993) ....................................................................................... 11
`Xilidev, Inc. v. Boku, Inc. and Boku Account Services, Inc. et al.,
`Case No. 3:13-cv-02793-DMS-NLS .................................................................................. 1
`In re Zletz,
`893 F.2d 319 (Fed. Cir. 1989) ................................................................................... 10, 11
`Statutes
`35 U.S.C. § 102 ..................................................................................................................... 20
`35 U.S.C. § 102(a) .......................................................................................................... 22, 31
`35 U.S.C. § 102(b) ...................................................................................................... 7, 21, 23
`35 U.S.C. § 103 .................................................................................................................... 20
`35 U.S.C. § 103(a) ................................................................................................ 7, 31, 50, 52
`
`
`
`
`
`-iv-
`
`
`
`

`
`
`35 U.S.C. § 112, ¶ 2 ...................................................................................................... passim
`35 U.S.C. § 112, ¶ 6 ....................................................................................................... 14, 15
`35 U.S.C. § 322(a)(1) ............................................................................................................. 3
`America Invents Act ............................................................................................................ 1, 4
`Other Authorities
`37 C.F.R. § 42 ........................................................................................................................ 1
`37 C.F.R. § 42.8(A)(1) ............................................................................................................. 1
`37 C.F.R. § 42.8(b)(1) ............................................................................................................. 1
`37 C.F.R. § 42.8(b)(2) ............................................................................................................. 1
`37 C.F.R. § 42.8(b)(3) ............................................................................................................. 1
`37 C.F.R. § 42.10(b) ............................................................................................................... 2
`37 C.F.R. § 42.15(b) ............................................................................................................... 3
`37 C.F.R. § 42.203 .................................................................................................................. 2
`37 C.F.R. § 42.300(b) ........................................................................................................... 10
`37 C.F.R. § 42.301(a) ......................................................................................................... 3, 5
`37 C.F.R. § 42.301(b) ............................................................................................................. 5
`37 C.F.R. § 42.302 ................................................................................................................. 3
`37 C.F.R. § 42.302(a) ............................................................................................................. 3
`37 C.F.R. § 42.302(b) ............................................................................................................. 3
`37 C.F.R. § 42.304 .................................................................................................................. 3
`37 C.F.R. § 42.304(a) ............................................................................................................. 3
`37 C.F.R. § 42.304(b) ............................................................................................................. 6
`37 C.F.R. § 42.304(b)(3) ....................................................................................................... 10
`
`
`
`
`
`-v-
`
`
`
`

`
`
`157 Cong. Rec. S1364. (daily ed. Mar. 8, 2011) .................................................................... 4
`157 Cong. Rec. S1364. (daily ed. Mar. 8, 2011) .................................................................. .. 4
`77 Fed. Reg. 48734, 48735 (August 14, 2012) .......................................................... 3, 4, 5, 6
`77 Fed. Reg. 48734, 48735 (August 14, 2012) ........................................................ .. 3, 4, 5, 6
`M.P.E.P. § 2141.01(a) .......................................................................................................... 21
`M.P.E.P. §2141.01(a) ........................................................................................................ .. 21
`M.P.E.P. § 2143 (A, C) ......................................................................................................... 20
`M.P.E.P. §2143 (A, C) ....................................................................................................... .. 20
`M.P.E.P. §2181(I) ................................................................................................................. 14
`M.P.E.P. §2181(|) ............................................................................................................... .. 14
`M.P.E.P. § 2181 (I)(B) .......................................................................................................... 14
`M.P.E.P. §2181 (|)(B) ........................................................................................................ .. 14
`M.P.E.P. § 2181 (I)(C) .......................................................................................................... 15
`M.P.E.P. §2181 (|)(C) ........................................................................................................ .. 15
`U.S. Patent No. 7,273,168 ............................................................................................. passim
`U.S. Patent No. 7,273,168 ........................................................................................... ..passim
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`-vi-
`
`
`
`

`
`Petition for Covered Business Method Review of U.S. Patent No. 7,273,168
`Attorney Docket No. BOKU-001/00US 321239-2001
`Through counsel, real parties-in-interest Boku, Inc. and Boku Account Services, Inc.
`
`(collectively, "Petitioner" or “Boku”) hereby petition for Covered Business Method (CBM)
`
`review under Section 18(a) of the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act (AIA) and 37 C.F.R. §
`
`42 of claims 1-23 of U.S. Patent No. 7,273,168 (Ex. 1001) (“the ‘168 patent”), and asserts
`
`that it is more likely than not that at least one of the claims challenged in the instant petition
`
`is unpatentable.
`
`I.
`
`MANDATORY NOTICES UNDER 37 C.F.R. § 42.8(A)(1)
`A.
`Real Parties-ln-lnterest under 37 C.F.R. § 42.8(b)(1)
`Boku, Inc. and Boku Account Services, Inc. are the real parties-in-interest for the
`
`instant petition. Boku Account Services, Inc. is a subsidiary of Boku, Inc.
`
`Related Matters under 37 C.F.R. § 42.8(b)(2)
`B.
`Boku, Inc. and Boku Account Services, Inc. have been sued by Patent Owner for
`
`infringement of the ‘168 patent in Xilidev, Inc. v. Boku, Inc. and Boku Account Services, Inc.
`
`et al., Case No. 3:13-cv-02793-DMS-NLS. See, Ex. 1008. This lawsuit was filed in the
`
`Southern District of California (San Diego) on November 25, 2013 and is on-going. As of the
`
`filing date of this petition, only claims 1, 12, and 17-19 have been asserted in the lawsuit. In
`
`addition, on November 26, 2013 in the same court, Patent Owner separately sued Danal,
`
`Inc. for infringement of the ‘168 patent: Xilidev, Inc. v. Danal, Inc. et al., Case No. 3:13-cv-
`
`02799-AJB-BLM. The case has settled, although the action has not yet been dismissed.
`
`1
`
`

`
`Petition for Covered Business Method Review of U.S. Patent No. 7,273,168
`Attorney Docket No. BOKU-001/00US 321239-2001
`There are no other related matters that the Petitioner is aware of at the time of filing the
`
`instant petition.
`
`Lead and Back-Up Counsel under 37 C.F.R. § 42.8(b)(3)
`C.
`Petitioner provides the following designation of counsel.
`
`LEAD COUNSEL
`Frank Pietrantonio (Reg. No. 32,289)
`Cooley LLP
` ATTN: Patent Group
`1299 Pennsylvania Ave., NW, Suite 700
`Washington, DC 20004
`Tel: (703) 456-8567
`Fax: (202) 842-7899
`
`fpietrantonio@cooley.com
`
`Service Information
`D.
`As identified in the attached Certificate of Service, a copy of the instant petition, in its
`
`BACK-UP COUNSEL
`Drew Koning (Reg. No. 60,764)
`Cooley LLP
` ATTN: Patent Group
`1299 Pennsylvania Ave., NW, Suite 700
`Washington, DC 20004
`Tel: (858) 550-6129
`Fax: (202) 842-7899
`
`dkoning@cooley.com
`
`entirety, including all Exhibits and a power of attorney, is being served by EXPRESS MAIL®
`
`to the address of the attorney or agent of record for the owner of record of the ‘168 patent,
`
`Xilidev, Inc. (“Patent Owner” or “Xilidev”). Boku may be served at the lead counsel address
`
`provided in Section I.C. of this Petition, and consents to electronic service by email at the
`
`addresses above.
`
`Power of Attorney
`E.
`A power of attorney is being filed with the designation of counsel in accordance with
`
`37 C.F.R. § 42.10(b).
`
`2
`
`

`
`Petition for Covered Business Method Review of U.S. Patent No. 7,273,168
`Attorney Docket No. BOKU-001/00US 321239-2001
`
`II.
`
`PAYMENT OF FEES - 37 C.F.R. § 42.203
`This petition for CBM review requests review of 23 claims of the ’168 patent and is
`
`accompanied by a payment of $35,150, which includes a $12,750 CBM Review Petition Fee
`
`(i.e., $12,000 for 20 claims and an additional $750 for 3 claims in excess of 20 claims) and a
`
`$22,400 Post-Institution Fee (i.e., $18,000 for 15 claims and an additional $4,400 for 8
`
`claims in excess of 15 claims). See 37 C.F.R. § 42.15(b). Thus, this petition meets the fee
`
`requirements under 35 U.S.C. § 322(a)(1).
`
`III.
`
`REQUIREMENTS FOR COVERED BUSINESS METHOD REVIEW UNDER 37 C.F.R. § 42.304
`A.
`Grounds for Standing under 37 C.F.R. § 42.304(a)
`Petitioner certifies that the ‘168 patent is eligible for CBM review (see Sections III.B
`
`and III.C below) and further certifies that Petitioner meets the eligibility requirements set
`
`forth in 37 C.F.R. § 42.302. As discussed in Section I.C of this petition, Boku has been sued
`
`by Patent Owner for infringement of the ‘168 patent in the aforementioned litigation. 37
`
`C.F.R. § 42.302(a). Boku is also not barred or otherwise estopped from challenging the
`
`claims on the grounds identified within the instant petition. 37 C.F.R. § 42.302(b).
`
`The ‘168 Patent is a “Covered Business Method Patent”
`B.
`A covered business method patent is defined as “a patent that claims a method or
`
`corresponding apparatus for performing data processing or other operations used in the
`
`practice, administration, or management of a financial product or service …” 37 C.F.R. §
`
`42.301(a). The term “financial product or service” should be “interpreted broadly” and
`
`“encompass patents claiming activities that are financial in nature, incidental to a financial
`
`3
`
`

`
`Petition for Covered Business Method Review of U.S. Patent No. 7,273,168
`Attorney Docket No. BOKU-001/00US 321239-2001
`activity or complementary to a financial activity.” Transitional Program for Covered Business
`
`Method Patents, 77 Fed. Reg. 48734, 48735 (August 14, 2012)(“CBM Final Rules”)(internal
`
`quotes omitted).
`
`Independent claims 1, 12, 17 and 18 are directed to covered business methods and
`
`qualify the ‘168 patent for CBM review. Independent claims 1 and 18, in particular, are
`
`directed to methods of authenticating or completing a transaction, which are clearly
`
`activities that are “financial in nature, incidental to a financial activity or complementary to a
`
`financial activity.” CBM Final Rules at 48735. Independent claims 1 and 18 also specifically
`
`recite “receiving … a transaction request associated with one or more products and a
`
`payment amount” (claim 1), “completing the transaction request by authorizing deduction of
`
`a transaction amount from the user account maintained by [a] payment source” (claim 1),
`
`“receiving an authorization code … indicating that the payment source authorized deduction
`
`of the payment amount from a payment source” (claim 18), and “deducting a transaction
`
`amount from the payment source” (claim 18). Ex. 1001. The activities of receiving and
`
`processing transaction requests and deducting payment from an account are the epitome of
`
`a financial activity. Independent claims 12 and 17 include similar recitations, although these
`
`claims are drafted in a system claim format.1
`
`1 Petitioner asserts that Congress intended system claims to qualify for CBM review. For
`
`example, during the passage of the America Invents Act, Senator Schumer clarified that
`
`“[t]he phrase ‘method or corresponding apparatus’ is intended to encompass, but not be
`
`4
`
`

`
`Petition for Covered Business Method Review of U.S. Patent No. 7,273,168
`Attorney Docket No. BOKU-001/00US 321239-2001
`The specification of the ‘168 patent further supports the notion that the claimed
`
`invention is directed to financial activity. The title of the ‘168 patent – “Point-of-Sale Billing
`
`via Hand-Held Devices” – is itself suggestive of financial activity, as billing is necessary and
`
`incidental to a financial transaction. Additionally, the “Background of the Invention” section
`
`of the ‘168 patent discloses that the “invention relates to systems and methods for
`
`completing transactions” and that the “[c]onvenient completion of financial transactions
`
`using hand-held devices continues to gain increasing popularity among consumers.” Ex.
`
`1001, 1:12-17]. Discussions of financial activity can easily be found throughout the ‘168
`
`patent.
`
`Since the claims of the ‘168 patent are directed to financial activity, the patent is
`
`eligible for CBM review.
`
`Claims 1-23 are Not Directed to a “Technological Invention”
`C.
`The CBM patent definition excludes “patents for technological inventions.” 37 C.F.R.
`
`§ 42.301(a). Whether or not a patent qualifies as a “technological invention” depends on the
`
`following factors, which are considered on a case-by-case basis: (a) “whether the claimed
`
`limited to, any type of claim contained in a patent, including, method claims, system claims,
`
`[and] apparatus claims… A patent qualifies as a covered business method patent
`
`regardless of the type or structure of claims contained in the patent.” 157 Cong. Rec.
`
`S1364. (daily ed. Mar. 8, 2011). Thus, independent claims 12 and 17 are also directed to
`
`covered business methods.
`
`5
`
`

`
`Petition for Covered Business Method Review of U.S. Patent No. 7,273,168
`Attorney Docket No. BOKU-001/00US 321239-2001
`subject matter as a whole recites a technological feature that is novel and unobvious over
`
`the prior art”, and (b) whether the claimed subject matter as a whole “solves a technical
`
`problem using a technical solution.” 37 C.F.R. § 42.301(b).
`
`The CBM Final Rules make clear that “[m]ere recitation of known technologies, such
`
`as computer hardware, communication or computer networks, software, memory, computer-
`
`readable storage medium, scanners, display devices or databases, or specialized
`
`machines, such as an ATM or point of sale device” does not typically render a patent a
`
`technological invention. CBM Final Rules at 48764.
`
`No technological feature is recited in the ‘168 patent claims. The ‘168 patent claims
`
`refer to hand-held devices, transaction databases, and point-of-sale devices, generic
`
`hardware that was neither novel nor unobvious on the effective filing date of the ‘168 patent
`
`but, the alleged invention concerns preventing fraudulent transactions by introducing an
`
`authorization code that verifies that a purchaser has the funds to complete a purchase. That
`
`code is not inherently a technological invention, nor is the process by which it is generated
`
`and verified. Ex. 1001, 2:1-4. For at least this reason, the ‘168 patent claims fail to satisfy
`
`the first prong of the two-part test. As for the second prong of the test, the claims are not
`
`directed to a technical problem at all. They are directed to modifying the amount and type of
`
`information exchanged in a financial transaction to reduce fraud.
`
`D.
`
`Identification of Challenge under 37 C.F.R. § 42.304(b) and Statement of
`Precise Relief Requested
`Petitioner respectfully requests that the Board initiate CBM review of claims 1-23 of
`
`6
`
`

`
`Petition for Covered Business Method Review of U.S. Patent No. 7,273,168
`Attorney Docket No. BOKU-001/00US 321239-2001
`the ‘168 patent on the grounds set forth in the table below, and requests that each of the
`
`claims be found unpatentable. An explanation of how claims 1-23 are unpatentable under
`
`the statutory grounds is identified below, including the identification of where each element
`
`is found in the prior art patents or publications and the relevance of the prior art reference.
`
`Additional explanation and support for each ground of rejection is set forth in the Declaration
`
`of Dr. Michael Shamos (Ex. 1003) (“Shamos Dec.”).
`
`Ground
`Ground 1
`Ground 2
`
`Ground 3
`
`Ground 4
`Ground 5
`
`‘168 Patent
`Basis for Challenge and Applicable Statutory Ground
`Claim(s)
`Indefinite under 35 U.S.C. § 112, Second Paragraph
`17
`1-5, 7-16, 18,
`Anticipated by Demoff under 35 U.S.C. § 102(b)
`20-23
`Anticipated by Demoff, as evidenced by Van Moer, under 35
`1-5, 7-16, 18,
`U.S.C. § 102(b) or, in the alternative, Obvious over Demoff in
`20-23
`view of Van Moer under 35 U.S.C. § 103(a)
`Obvious over Demoff under 35 U.S.C. § 103(a)
`19
`Obvious over Demoff in view of Gerson under 35 U.S.C. §
`6
`103(a)
`1-11, 20-23 Obvious over Gerson in view of Wronski under 35 U.S.C. §
`103(a)
`12-16, 18-19 Anticipated by Gerson under 35 U.S.C. § 102(b)
`Obvious over Gerson in view of Wronski under 35 U.S.C. §
`18-19
`103(a)
`
`Ground 6
`Ground 7
`Ground 8
`
`SUMMARY OF THE ‘168 PATENT
`A.
`Brief Description of the ‘168 Patent
`The ‘168 patent, titled “Point-Of-Sale Billing via Hand-Held Devices,” describes a
`
`IV.
`
`system and method that allows for the purchase of products and services using a hand-held
`
`device. Ex. 1001, Abstract. As shown below in FIG. 1 of the ‘168 patent, the system can
`
`7
`
`

`
`Petition for Covered Business Method Review of U.S. Patent No. 7,273,168
`Attorney Docket No. BOKU-001/00US 321239-2001
`include the hand-held device 120 (operated by the consumer), a payment resolution module
`
`110, a payment authorization source 130, a transaction database 140 and a confirmation
`
`device 150 located at the point-of-sale.
`
`
`
`During operation, when a consumer desires to purchase a product (or service) from
`
`a merchant, the hand-held device 120 connects with the payment resolution module 110,
`
`and initiates a transaction request by selecting the desired product (or service) for purchase
`
`and then sending this selection request to the payment resolution module 110. Col. 3, ln.
`
`14-28; see also, FIG. 4; FIG. 3 (items 310 and 320) and corresponding description at col. 7,
`
`ln. 26-46 (“a desired product is identified by entering a product identification code or by
`
`navigating a series of menus using the hand-held device 120”); and col. 1, ln. 43-50. The
`
`payment resolution module 110 then “transmits a verification of the selected product to the
`
`hand-held device 120.” Col. 3, ln. 25-28. In some embodiments, the payment resolution
`
`module 110 may also send “availability, price, product description, and/or other product
`
`related information” back to the hand-held device 120. Col. 1, ln. 50-54.
`
`Next, the payment resolution module 110 authenticates the consumer to ensure that
`
`the consumer is authorized to make the purchase on the hand-held device 120. Col. 3, ln.
`
`8
`
`

`
`Petition for Covered Business Method Review of U.S. Patent No. 7,273,168
`Attorney Docket No. BOKU-001/00US 321239-2001
`29-45; see also, FIG. 3 (item 330) and FIG. 5. For example, the ‘168 patent describes using
`
`a personal identification code (Abstract), biometrics (col. 7, ln. 17-21), caller ID (col. 7, ln.
`
`48-52), or a serial number of the hand-held device 120 (id.) to identify the consumer for
`
`authentification purposes. See, also, col. 5, ln. 19-34.
`
`After the consumer is authenticated, the payment resolution module 110 transmits
`
`“information identifying the user, along with the product information, such as the price of the
`
`product requested,” to the payment authorization source 130. Col. 3, ln. 46-49. The
`
`“payment authorization source 130” can be, for example, a financial institution such as a
`
`credit card company. Col. 3, ln. 52-55. In return, the payment authorization source 130
`
`sends the payment resolution module 110 “either an authorization or denial” for the
`
`requested charge amount. Col. 3, ln. 62-65.
`
`In some embodiments, the payment resolution module 110 is configured to generate
`
`an authorization code for the approved transactions. Col. 4, ln. 10-12. The authorization
`
`code can then be stored at the transaction database 140 along with other transaction-
`
`related information. Col. 4, ln. 13-26. The payment resolution module 110 also sends this
`
`authorization code to the hand-held device 120 for future use. Col. 4, ln. 27-39.
`
`At the point of sale, the consumer is required by the merchant to provide the
`
`authorization code. Id. The authorization code can be entered into the confirmation device
`
`150 by either the consumer or the merchant. Col. 4, ln. 40-50. The confirmation device 150
`
`then “communicates with the transaction database 140 to confirm that the sales transaction
`
`9
`
`

`
`Petition for Covered Business Method Review of U.S. Patent No. 7,273,168
`Attorney Docket No. BOKU-001/00US 321239-2001
`has been authorized.” Id. For example, as shown in FIG. 8 of the ‘168 patent, the
`
`transaction database 140 can search for a stored authorization code that matches the
`
`authorization code entered at and received from the confirmation device 150. Col. 11, ln.
`
`16-25. When a matching code is found, the transaction database 140 can send the code to
`
`the confirmation device 150 where it is again compared against the previously entered
`
`authorization code. Col. 11, ln. 26-28; see also, FIG. 8 (item 830). If the confirmation device
`
`150 determines that the codes match, then the transaction is authorized and the consumer
`
`may collect the products or services s/he purchased. Col. 11, ln. 52-67. Shamos Dec., Ex.
`
`1003, ¶¶ 15-24.
`
`Person of Ordinary Skill in the Art
`B.
`A person of ordinary skill in the art (“POSITA”) in the field of the ‘168 patent in
`
`October 2003 (i.e., the presumed effective filing date of the ‘168 patent) would have been
`
`someone with an undergraduate degree in computer science or with equivalent work
`
`experience. In addition that person would have at least two years of experience with
`
`electronic payment systems, including familiarity with databases and integration with
`
`interactive voice response software. See, Shamos Dec., Ex. 1003, ¶¶ 11-14.
`
`V.
`
`CLAIM CONSTRUCTION UNDER 37 C.F.R. § 42.304(b)(3)
`A claim subject to CBM review is given its “broadest reasonable construction in light
`
`of the specification of the patent in which it appears.” 37 C.F.R. § 42.300(b). This means
`
`that the words of the claim are given their plain meaning unless that meaning is inconsistent
`
`10
`
`

`
`Petition for Covered Business Method Review of U.S. Patent No. 7,273,168
`Attorney Docket No. BOKU-001/00US 321239-2001
`with the specification. In re Zletz, 893 F.2d 319, 321 (Fed. Cir. 1989). The “broadest
`
`reasonable construction” standard also requires the Board to refrain from importing a
`
`particular embodiment from the written description into the claim if the claim language is
`
`broader than the embodiment. See In re Van Geuns, 988 F.2d 1181, 1184 (Fed. Cir. 1993).
`
`This Petition shows that the claims of the ‘168 patent are indefinite, anticipated or
`
`rendered obvious by the prior art identified herein when the challenged claims are given
`
`their broadest reasonable interpretation in light of the specification.2 Except as expressly
`
`set out below, Petitioner construes the language of the claims to have its plain and ordinary
`
`meaning.
`
`the Transaction Request” and “Completing
`
`the
`
`A.
`
`“Completing
`Transaction”
`Independent claim 1 recites “completing the transaction request.” Independent claim
`
`17 recites “completing the transaction request” as well as a “means for completing the
`
`transaction request”. (Note: this “means for” recitation will be addressed separately in
`
`Section V.F below.) The preambles of independent claims 12 and 18 each recite
`
`“completing a transaction” but there are no further references in claims 12 and 18 to
`
`“completing”.
`
`
`2 Any interpretation or construction of the challenged claims in this CBM, either implicitly or
`
`explicitly, is not binding on Petitioner in any future litigation related to the ‘168 patent. See In
`
`re Zletz, 893 F.2d 319, 321 (Fed. Cir. 1989).
`
`11
`
`

`
`Petition for Covered Business Method Review of U.S. Patent No. 7,273,168
`Attorney Docket No. BOKU-001/00US 321239-2001
`The ‘168 patent is largely silent about what it means to complete the transaction
`
`
`
`request. Figure 3 at 320 refers to “transmitting the transaction request.” Then, the last step
`
`in Fig. 3 refers to “[verifying the] authorization code at the point of sale.” Ex. 1001. Claim 1
`
`refers to “receiving a transaction request” and then goes on to state what actions take place,
`
`upon verification of the authorization code. Claim 1 states, “completing the transaction
`
`request by authorizing deduction of a transaction amount from the user account maintained
`
`by the payment source and authorizing release of the one or more products to the user of
`
`the hand-held device.” Ex. 1001. Thus “completing the transaction request” means
`
`completing the steps that are performed “by” or at the direction of the payment resolution
`
`module in order to complete the request – in this case, authorizing deduction of the
`
`transaction amount and authorizing release of the products to the user.
`
`
`
`Under the broadest reasonable construction standard, the phrases “completing the
`
`transactio

This document is available on Docket Alarm but you must sign up to view it.


Or .

Accessing this document will incur an additional charge of $.

After purchase, you can access this document again without charge.

Accept $ Charge
throbber

Still Working On It

This document is taking longer than usual to download. This can happen if we need to contact the court directly to obtain the document and their servers are running slowly.

Give it another minute or two to complete, and then try the refresh button.

throbber

A few More Minutes ... Still Working

It can take up to 5 minutes for us to download a document if the court servers are running slowly.

Thank you for your continued patience.

This document could not be displayed.

We could not find this document within its docket. Please go back to the docket page and check the link. If that does not work, go back to the docket and refresh it to pull the newest information.

Your account does not support viewing this document.

You need a Paid Account to view this document. Click here to change your account type.

Your account does not support viewing this document.

Set your membership status to view this document.

With a Docket Alarm membership, you'll get a whole lot more, including:

  • Up-to-date information for this case.
  • Email alerts whenever there is an update.
  • Full text search for other cases.
  • Get email alerts whenever a new case matches your search.

Become a Member

One Moment Please

The filing “” is large (MB) and is being downloaded.

Please refresh this page in a few minutes to see if the filing has been downloaded. The filing will also be emailed to you when the download completes.

Your document is on its way!

If you do not receive the document in five minutes, contact support at support@docketalarm.com.

Sealed Document

We are unable to display this document, it may be under a court ordered seal.

If you have proper credentials to access the file, you may proceed directly to the court's system using your government issued username and password.


Access Government Site

We are redirecting you
to a mobile optimized page.





Document Unreadable or Corrupt

Refresh this Document
Go to the Docket

We are unable to display this document.

Refresh this Document
Go to the Docket