Prior art — US Patent 9270744

As a technical patent analyst, I have analyzed US Patent 9270744, titled "System and method for providing additional functionality to existing software in an integrated manner," to identify the most relevant prior art.

US Patent 9270744 (US9270744B2) was granted on February 23, 2016, from an application filed on April 20, 2015, which claims priority to July 16, 2013. The patent addresses the problem of adding functionality to existing software, particularly in mobile environments, without requiring disruptive context switching to separate applications. It introduces a "function block" that is integrated into a "superblock application" and provides capabilities via an Application Programming Interface (API), allowing services to be performed seamlessly within the superblock application's context.

The most relevant prior art citations are discussed below, excluding related patent family members that represent the same inventive concept.

Most Relevant Prior Art Citations for US9270744B2

US20100058353A1
- Full Citation: US20100058353A1, "Exposure of remotely invokable method through a webpage to an application outside web browser," assigned to Microsoft Corporation.
- Publication/Filing Date: Priority Date: August 28, 2008. Publication Date: March 4, 2010.
- Brief Description: This publication describes a technology for exposing a remotely invokable method through a webpage to an application outside a web browser. A web browser loads a webpage with code defining a method to invoke a corresponding method of an application external to the web browser. The invocation is secure, occurring only if the webpage originates from a trusted domain.
- Potential Anticipation under 35 U.S.C. § 102: This reference describes a system for inter-application communication where a webpage (loaded by a web browser, which is an application) interacts with a separate, external application. While it provides a way to extend functionality, it fundamentally relies on interaction between distinct applications. The core inventive step of US9270744B2, as recited in claims 1, 15, and 20, is performing operations "without switching context from the superblock application to another application on the mobile device" by having the "function block included therein" (Abstract, US9270744B2). US20100058353A1's architecture, involving a "web browser" and an "application outside web browser," inherently suggests separate application contexts, which is precisely what US9270744B2 aims to avoid. Therefore, this reference is unlikely to anticipate the "without switching context" limitation present in the independent claims (1, 15, 20) and their dependent claims.
US7656870B2
- Full Citation: U.S. Pat. No. 7,656,870, "System and method for peer-to-peer hybrid communications," by Chaturvedi et al., assigned to Damaka, Inc. (the same assignee as US9270744B2).
- Publication/Filing Date: Filing Date: March 15, 2005. Publication Date: February 2, 2010.
- Brief Description: This patent discloses a system and method for peer-to-peer hybrid communications. It details an "endpoint" which can be a client program on a device, capable of communicating with other devices in a peer-to-peer manner, or through a server, or a combination of both. It supports various communication features like instant messaging, audio, video, and collaboration. The detailed description of US9270744B2 explicitly states that "the function block 200 may contain functionality similar to that of an endpoint as described in detail in U.S. Pat. No. 7,656,870" (Col. 17, lines 34-37, US9270744B2).
- Potential Anticipation under 35 U.S.C. § 102: US7656870B2 provides a foundational description for the types of communication capabilities (e.g., instant messaging, presence, audio, video, file transfer, conferencing, collaboration) that the "function block" in US9270744B2 is designed to offer. Therefore, it may potentially anticipate aspects related to the nature of the communication services themselves (e.g., Claims 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 of US9270744B2), and the general concept of establishing connections with external devices to support these services (e.g., elements of Claims 1, 15, 20 related to external device connection). However, similar to US20100058353A1, US7656870B2 does not appear to disclose the key distinguishing feature of US9270744B2: the integrated architecture where the function block is "included within" the superblock application, allowing these services to be provided "without switching context from the superblock application to another application." The "endpoint" in US7656870B2 is described as a "client program," typically implying a standalone application, rather than an integrated module within another application designed to explicitly prevent context switching.

Related Patent Family Member (Not Anticipatory Prior Art)

US20150026700A1
- Full Citation: US20150026700A1, "System and method for providing additional functionality to existing software in an integrated manner," assigned to Damaka, Inc.
- Publication/Filing Date: Priority Date: July 16, 2013. Publication Date: January 22, 2015.
- Brief Description: This is a pre-grant publication that shares the same priority date and title as the applications from which US9270744B2 is derived (US9270744B2 is a continuation of US14/024,027, which claims priority to US61/846,958, both with a July 16, 2013 priority date).
- Potential Anticipation under 35 U.S.C. § 102: This document is an earlier publication of an application within the same patent family and describes the same invention. As such, it is not considered anticipatory prior art under 35 U.S.C. § 102 for the claims of US9270744B2, but rather a related disclosure from the same inventive entity.