101 Rejection Reference Database – Art Unit 3683
Transportation, Construction, Electronic Commerce, Agriculture, National Security and License & Review
Examiner: Gavin Kristin Elizabeth
Patent Assignee | Patent Application |
Coupa Software | 15/807,436 |
Automatically identifying risk in contract negotiations using graphical time curves of contract history and divergence
Patent Abstract
In one embodiment, a method includes storing digital data representing a contract set of contract documents, storing digital contract metadata identifying data fields and associated data types with respectively assigned weights in each contract document, identifying and weighting differences between data field values, calculating distance scores based on the weighted differences, generating and causing displaying a time curve graph based on the distance scores and a temporal ordering of the contract documents, the time curve graph including a geometric shape that graphically indicates time curves and a spatial proximity between the contract documents, performing a digital geometric analysis of the time curve graph to identify whether the geometric shape indicates a lack of convergence over a threshold amount of time, in response to determining that the geometric shape indicates the lack of convergence, generating and causing displaying a notification indicating that the contract set is at risk.
Reason for 101 Rejection
Examiner asserted the claims are directed to the abstract idea of certain methods of organizing human activities and mathematical concepts. The claims recite a method of organizing human activity because they are directed to mitigating risk through digital geometric analysis using a time curve graph. Further, because the claims recite utilizing without significantly more, the claims are also directed to a mathematical concept.
Remarks on Overcoming the 101 Rejection
Applicant submits that the claims as amended recite a specific way of automatic risk management through generating a time curve graph based on extracted contract data based on the convergence of the generated time curve graph. The claimed process provides a graphical representation of how the contract changes as a function of time, which is more than a risk mitigation technique as determined by Alice.