Value Delivered
GreyB provided the client with a comprehensive set of Tier 1 references to submit as a system prior art. The strategic approach combined device review videos, user manual, and operating system analysis as references. Identifying these highly relevant references would have been impossible through standard searches. Our approach discovered the most relevant system prior art, strengthening the findings while streamlining the search process.
Problem Solved
Identifying relevant prior art for a graphical user interface in a smartphone presented significant challenges. The target claims described a touch screen with two distinct areas for app icons. Swiping within the first area changes the displayed icons to a new set, while the icons in the second area remain unchanged. Additionally, if an app was previously used, it should resume from where it was left off.
Conventional searches yielded videos of older touchscreen smartphones, which provided insight into partial functionality. The swiping gesture feature was easily identifiable in both patent and non-patent literature. The real challenge was locating references for the feature that ensured previously launched apps resumed from their last stage. Without clear documentation, establishing this feature as prior art required an alternative strategy.
Solutions Offered
A structured, multi-layered approach was adopted to trace the origins of the required functionality. The team conducted an extensive review of touchscreen smartphones available before the cutoff date, instead of relying solely on traditional sources.
Device review videos served as an initial filtering tool. This helped identify models that incorporate partial aspects of the required features. To bridge the remaining gap, user manuals of the shortlisted smartphones were analyzed. This method uncovered key details regarding how these devices handled previously launched applications.
It was observed that smartphones showcasing the required features operated on the same underlying operating system. By leveraging this insight, further references were identified by systematically tracking other devices running the same OS.
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