Prior art

To identify the most relevant prior art for US patent 11164456, I will use the information available on Google Patents, which typically lists "Prior art citations" for a patent. This information is considered authoritative for this analysis. The USPTO provides tools for patent searching, including the Patent Public Search tool, which allows users to search for patents and patent application publications. This would be used in a comprehensive search, but for direct citations of 11164456, the Google Patents page is sufficient.

Based on the Google Patents page for US11164456, the patent itself cites US 7,840,427 and US 6,697,730 in its description. Additionally, the PTAB challenge IPR2026-00307 lists US 7,840,427, US 2005/0125206, and EP 1,489,521 as prior art references.

Here's an analysis of the most relevant prior art identified:

1. US 7,840,427 B2

   • Full Citation: US 7,840,427 B2 (O'Sullivan)
   • Publication/Filing Date: Claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/900,808, filed February 12, 2007. The nonprovisional application was filed on February 12, 2008. Issued on November 23, 2010.
   • Brief Description: This patent, "System and method for matching pick-up requests with transport providers, tracking trip progress, and enabling provider ratings," is a direct parent patent to US11164456, as US11164456 is a continuation of application Ser. No. 12/069,656, which became US 7,840,427 B2. It describes a network system that matches transportation requests with providers, tracks trip progress, and enables provider ratings. The description in US11164456 explicitly states, "This application is a continuation of and claims the benefit of priority to U.S. Nonprovisional patent application Ser. No. 16/983,598, filed Aug. 3, 2020, which is a continuation of and claims the benefit of priority to U.S. Nonprovisional patent application Ser. No. 16/698,312, filed Nov. 27, 2019, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,748,420, issued Aug. 18, 2020, which is a continuation of and claims the benefit of priority to U.S. Nonprovisional patent application Ser. No. 16/198,000, filed Nov. 21, 2018, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,593,206, issued Mar. 17, 2020, which is a continuation of and claims the benefit of priority to U.S. Nonprovisional patent application Ser. No. 15/998,864, filed Aug. 17, 2018, which is a continuation of and claims the benefit of priority to U.S. Nonprovisional patent application Ser. No. 12/924,487, filed Sep. 28, 2010, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,083,608, issued Sep. 25, 2018, which is a division of and claims the benefit of priority to U.S. Nonprovisional patent application Ser. No. 12/069,656, filed Feb. 12, 2008, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,840,427, issued Nov. 23, 2010, which claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/900,808, filed Feb. 12, 2007, which are incorporated herein by reference in their entireties." This makes US 7,840,427 a highly relevant piece of prior art, as it describes very similar subject matter from which US11164456 derives.
   • Potential Anticipated Claim(s) (under 35 U.S.C. § 102): Given that US 7,840,427 is a direct parent patent, it is highly likely to anticipate many, if not all, of claims 1-20 of US11164456, especially regarding the fundamental aspects of matching pick-up requests with transport providers, tracking trip progress, and enabling provider ratings. Any claims in US11164456 that do not introduce a novel and non-obvious distinction over US 7,840,427 could be challenged for anticipation or obviousness. The IPR2026-00307 petition specifically challenges claims 1-20 based on US 7,840,427, among other references.

2. US 6,697,730 B1

   • Full Citation: US 6,697,730 B1 (Hatch et al.)
   • Publication/Filing Date: Issued on February 24, 2004. (Filing date of priority application is July 2, 2001).
   • Brief Description: Titled "Method and apparatus for providing dynamic ride-sharing services," this patent describes a system using a central assigning system and communication devices in vehicles to transmit and receive information for ride-sharing. The description of US11164456 explicitly mentions this patent: "Proposals have been made, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 6,697,730, to use a central assigning system and communications devices adapted to be associated with vehicles for transmitting information from the vehicles to the central assigning system, and for receiving information from the central assigning system."
   • Potential Anticipated Claim(s) (under 35 U.S.C. § 102): This patent could potentially anticipate claims related to the general concept of a central system matching riders and drivers, communication between vehicle devices and a central system, and transmitting information regarding vehicle location and availability. Specifically, elements of Claim 1, Claim 11, and Claim 18 concerning the "Shared Transport Marketplace" receiving location and route information from driver devices and demand information from rider devices, and matching requests, could be seen as broadly covered by US 6,697,730.

3. US 2005/0125206 A1

   • Full Citation: US 2005/0125206 A1 (O'Mahony)
   • Publication/Filing Date: Published on June 9, 2005. (Filing date of priority application is December 3, 2003).
   • Brief Description: Titled "Transportation service management system and method," this patent application describes a system for managing transportation services, including dispatching vehicles and handling passenger requests. It involves communication between a central server, passenger devices, and vehicle devices.
   • Potential Anticipated Claim(s) (under 35 U.S.C. § 102): This reference could potentially anticipate claims in US11164456 related to the overall system architecture for managing transportation services, the interaction between passenger and vehicle devices with a central system, and the dispatching of vehicles in response to requests. The IPR2026-00307 petition explicitly challenges claims 1-20 based on this reference.

4. EP 1,489,521 B1

   • Full Citation: EP 1,489,521 B1 (O'Mahony)
   • Publication/Filing Date: Published on December 22, 2004. (Filing date of priority application is June 11, 2003).
   • Brief Description: This European patent, titled "Transportation service management system and method," appears to be a European counterpart or related patent to US 2005/0125206 A1, given the same inventor and title. It would therefore describe similar concepts for managing transportation services through a networked system.
   • Potential Anticipated Claim(s) (under 35 U.S.C. § 102): Similar to US 2005/0125206 A1, this reference could anticipate claims related to the system for managing transport, communication between devices, and matching/dispatching functions. The IPR2026-00307 petition explicitly challenges claims 1-20 based on this reference.