`____________________________________________
`BEFORE THE PATENT TRIAL AND APPEAL BOARD
`____________________________________________
`PNC BANK, N.A.,
`Petitioner,
`v.
`UNITED SERVICES AUTOMOBILE ASSOCIATION,
`Patent Owner.
`_________________________________________
`Case IPR2022-00049
`Case IPR2022-00050
`_________________________________________
`
`PETITION FOR INTER PARTES REVIEW OF
`U.S. PATENT NO. 10,402,638
`_________________________________________
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`PETITIONER’S PETITION RANKING AND EXPLANATION OF
`MATERIAL DIFFERENCES BETWEEN PETITIONS
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`I.
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`Introduction
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`Petition Ranking
`IPR2022-00049 and IPR2022-00050
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`Petitioner is concurrently filing two petitions for inter partes review of U.S.
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`Patent No. 10,402,638 (“’638 patent”). Petitioner respectfully requests the Board
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`to exercise its discretion to institute both petitions because they are based on
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`different priority dates and different sets of prior art references. The issues at play
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`are complex such that, given the different priority dates and prior art references,
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`Petitioner reasonably requires two petitions to adequately set forth its grounds.
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`Petitioner respectfully submits this notice of ranking of its petitions pursuant
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`to the 2019 PTAB Consolidated Trial Practice Guide. Specifically, this paper (A)
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`ranks the petitions, (B) explains the material differences between the petitions, and
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`(C) explains why the Board should exercise its discretion to institute both petitions.
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`II. Ranking of Petitions
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`Although Petitioner believes that its petitions are each meritorious and
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`justified, Petitioner requests, at this stage, that the Board consider the petitions in
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`the following order:
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`Rank
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`Petition
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`References
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`1
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`2
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`Oakes-I, Oakes-II,
`Medina, and Roach
`Garcia, Byrne, Lev,
`Watanabe, and Maeda
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`IPR2022-00050
`(“Petition 1”)
`IPR2022-00049
`(“Petition 2”)
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`Petition Ranking
`IPR2022-00049 and IPR2022-00050
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`III. Petition 1 And Petition 2 Are Materially Different
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`Petition 1 and Petition 2 are materially different because they are premised
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`on different priority positions and rely on non-overlapping sets of prior art
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`references.
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`1. Different Priority Dates
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`The ’638 patent is part of a chain of continuation applications claiming
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`priority to U.S. Application No. 11/590,974 (“’974 Application”), filed October
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`31, 2006. Petition 1 demonstrates that, despite the priority claim, the ’638 patent
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`claims are not entitled to a priority date earlier than July 28, 2017 because of a
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`priority break. Specifically, Petition 1 explains that:
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`the ’974 Application does not provide written description support for
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`claim limitations of the ’638 patent, including (1) “handheld mobile device with a
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`digital camera,” (2) “check for errors before the submitting is performed by the
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`customer’s handheld mobile device,” (3) “confirm that the mobile check deposit
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`can go forward after optical character recognition is performed on the check,” and
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`(4) particular sequences of check deposit steps; and
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`these limitations are, at the earliest, supported by an intermediate
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`patent in the priority chain, filed on July 28, 2017.
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`Petition 1 sets forth evidence of this priority chain break and demonstrates,
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`under the priority date of July 28, 2017, that the challenged claims are invalid.
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`Petition 2, on the other hand, demonstrates that, even if the ’638 patent were
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`Petition Ranking
`IPR2022-00049 and IPR2022-00050
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`entitled to the claimed priority date of October 31, 2006, the challenged claims are
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`nonetheless invalid. Accordingly, Petition 1 and Petition 2 rely on different
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`priority dates, and, on that basis alone, are materially different.
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`2. Different, Non-Overlapping Prior Art References
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`The two petitions rely on different, non-overlapping sets of prior art
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`references. In Petition 1, because of the priority break, the patent that issued from
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`the ’974 Application—U.S. Patent No. 8,708,227 (“Oakes-I”)—is available as
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`prior art to the ’638 patent. Accordingly, Petition 1 relies on Oakes-I and other
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`references, to demonstrate that the challenged claims are obvious.
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`Petition 2, on the other hand, relies on prior art references that predate the
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`claimed priority date of October 31, 2006—Garcia, Byrne, Lev, Watanabe, and
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`Maeda. As is evident, the two petitions rely on non-overlapping sets of prior art
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`references, and are thus materially different.
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`IV. The Board Should Exercise Its Discretion To Institute Both Petitions
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`Petitioner respectfully requests the Board to exercise its discretion to
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`institute both Petition 1 and Petition 2.
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`The Board frequently institutes multiple petitions when petitions are based
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`on different priority dates. The 2019 PTAB Consolidated Trial Practice Guide
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`provides “a dispute about priority date requiring arguments under multiple prior art
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`references” as an example of a “circumstance[] in which more than one petition
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`Petition Ranking
`IPR2022-00049 and IPR2022-00050
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`may be necessary.” 2019 Consolidated Practice Guide, 59.
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`Indeed, the PTAB has held that a “dispute” about “the priority date for the
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`challenged patent... can… justify two petitions.” Samsung Elecs. Co., Ltd. v.
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`Acorn Semi LLC, IPR2020-01206, Paper 22, 42 (PTAB Jan. 13, 2021) (instituting
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`trial on both IPR petitions). In Samsung, the patent-at-issue claimed priority to an
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`original application filed on August 1, 2006. Petitioner, however, contended the
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`challenged claims were not entitled to a priority date earlier than February 7, 2011
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`and filed two petitions, one based on the 2011 priority date and another based on
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`the claimed 2006 priority date. Id. at 15-16. The Board instituted both petitions,
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`explaining that the Board was “persuaded the challenges are sufficiently different
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`and premised on different priority positions that it is appropriate to allow parallel
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`petitions, so the issues can be addressed separately.” Id. at 42. See also NRG
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`Energy, Inc. and Talen Energy Corp. v. Midwest Energy Emissions Corp.,
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`IPR2020-00926, Paper 19 at 26 (PTAB Dec. 2, 2020) (instituting two petitions
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`premised on different priority dates).
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`The same is true here. Petition 1 and Petition 2 are premised on the earliest-
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`supported 2017 priority date and the claimed 2006 priority date, respectively, and
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`present sufficiently different invalidity challenges based on non-overlapping prior
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`art references. In view of the material differences and the strength of both
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`petitions, Petitioner respectfully requests the Board to institute both petitions. If
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`Petition Ranking
`IPR2022-00049 and IPR2022-00050
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`the Board so desires, both proceedings can be consolidated on a single schedule
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`with a single oral argument to mitigate any inconvenience or burden of instituting
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`more than one petition.
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`For these reasons, Petitioner respectfully requests that the Board institute
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`inter partes review on both petitions.
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`***
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`“[A] table to aid in identifying the similarities and difference between
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`petitions” is provided below. 2019 Consolidated Practice Guide, 60.
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`Ranking
`Priority Date
`Prior Art References
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`IPR2022-00050
`Rank 1
`July 28, 2017
`Oakes-I, Oakes-II,
`Medina, and Roach
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`IPR2022-00050
`Rank 2
`October 31, 2006
`Garcia, Byrne, Lev,
`Watanabe, and Maeda
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`Respectfully Submitted,
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`Date: October 21, 2021 By: /Monica Grewal/
`Monica Grewal
`Reg. No. 40,056
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