DCT
2:22-cv-00048
Tiare Technology Inc v. Wingstop Inc
I. Executive Summary and Procedural Information
- Parties & Counsel:
- Plaintiff: Tiare Technology, Inc. (Delaware)
- Defendant: Wingstop Inc. and Wingstop Holdings, Inc. (Delaware)
- Plaintiff’s Counsel: The Davis Firm, PC
- Case Identification: 2:22-cv-00048, E.D. Tex., 02/09/2022
- Venue Allegations: Plaintiff alleges venue is proper in the Eastern District of Texas because Defendant is registered to do business in Texas, operates multiple regular and established places of business within the District, and distributes its accused mobile application to users in the District, from which it derives significant revenue.
- Core Dispute: Plaintiff alleges that Defendant’s mobile ordering application infringes patents related to mobile ordering systems that incorporate patron location tracking.
- Technical Context: The technology concerns mobile software applications for venues, such as restaurants, that determine a user's location to facilitate order placement and fulfillment.
- Key Procedural History: The complaint emphasizes that the asserted patents underwent extensive examination at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, which considered and ultimately overcame rejections based on patent-eligible subject matter under 35 U.S.C. § 101 and the Alice framework. This suggests Plaintiff anticipates a patent eligibility challenge from the Defendant.
Case Timeline
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| 2002-09-23 | Priority Date for all Asserted Patents |
| 2014-03-25 | U.S. Patent No. 8,682,729 Issues |
| 2017-12-29 | USPTO issues Non-Final Rejection during ’414 Patent prosecution |
| 2018-03-28 | Tiare files Response to Office Action during '414 Patent prosecution |
| 2018-08-28 | USPTO issues Final Rejection during '414 Patent prosecution |
| 2018-10-22 | Tiare files Claim Amendment during '414 Patent prosecution |
| 2018-10-31 | USPTO issues Notice of Allowance for '414 Patent |
| 2018-12-18 | U.S. Patent No. 10,157,414 Issues |
| 2021-12-07 | U.S. Patent No. 11,195,224 Issues |
| 2022-02-09 | Complaint Filed |
II. Technology and Patent(s)-in-Suit Analysis
U.S. Patent No. 8,682,729 - "Patron Service System and Method," issued March 25, 2014
The Invention Explained
- Problem Addressed: The patent's background section, as cited in the complaint, describes drawbacks of conventional ordering systems from the early 2000s, such as fixed, "centrally-located kiosks" or staff-operated handheld terminals. These systems allegedly failed to provide "true mobile-ordering" for patrons themselves and lacked the ability to track a patron's location within a venue for efficient order delivery (Compl. ¶¶34-35; ’729 Patent, col. 2:21-60).
- The Patented Solution: The invention provides a method where a patron uses a "wireless patron unit" (e.g., a smartphone) with a downloaded "venue specific application program" to place an order. A key aspect of the solution is the system's ability to determine the patron's current location and update both the order status and the location on the user's device, solving the problem of delivering orders to mobile patrons (’729 Patent, Abstract; ’729 Patent, Fig. 1).
- Technical Importance: The complaint asserts that this approach represented a technical improvement by enabling real-time, centralized location tracking for mobile ordering at a time when technologies like commercial GPS and Wi-Fi were not yet conventional (Compl. ¶¶37-38).
Key Claims at a Glance
- The complaint asserts independent method claim 1 ('729 Patent, Compl. ¶56).
- Essential elements of claim 1 include:
- Providing a patron with a wireless patron unit by providing a venue specific application program for downloading into a patron-owned device.
- Connecting the wireless patron unit to a server.
- Entering a patron order into the wireless patron unit.
- Determining a current location of the wireless patron unit.
- Updating a status of the patron order, and the current location of the wireless patron unit when the patron moves to a different location, on the wireless patron unit.
- Displaying the patron order on a display of the wireless patron unit.
- The complaint does not explicitly reserve the right to assert dependent claims.
U.S. Patent No. 10,157,414 - "Patron Service System and Method," issued December 18, 2018
The Invention Explained
- Problem Addressed: As a continuation of the application leading to the '729 Patent, the ’414 Patent addresses the same technical problems of inefficient ordering and the challenge of locating mobile patrons within a large venue like a resort (’414 Patent, col. 2:21-57).
- The Patented Solution: This patent claims a computer-implemented method executed by one or more processors (i.e., on the server side). The method involves providing a venue-specific application, authenticating a user, and then repeatedly receiving location information from the user's mobile device to determine an initial location and subsequently an updated location at a second time. This location data is used in conjunction with received order information to facilitate service (’414 Patent, Abstract; ’414 Patent, col. 26:8-40).
- Technical Importance: The solution is presented as an unconventional use of nascent location-tracking sensors in mobile devices to convey location information to a central server, overcoming the technical limitations of prior kiosk-based systems (Compl. ¶38).
Key Claims at a Glance
- The complaint asserts independent method claim 8 (’414 Patent, Compl. ¶76).
- Essential elements of claim 8 include:
- Providing a venue-specific application to a mobile computing device over a wireless channel.
- Communicating with the device to authenticate a user based on a security protocol.
- Receiving location information from the device.
- Determining a location of the device at a first time.
- Mapping the location to a region associated with a venue.
- Receiving order information from the device.
- Receiving updated location information from the device.
- Determining an updated location of the device at a second time based on the updated information.
- The complaint does not explicitly reserve the right to assert dependent claims.
Multi-Patent Capsule
- Patent Identification: U.S. Patent No. 11,195,224, "Patron Service System and Method," issued December 7, 2021 (’224 Patent, Compl. ¶26).
- Technology Synopsis: This patent, from the same family, claims a system for locating electronic devices. The system provides a venue-specific application to multiple mobile devices, receives first and second location signals from them to determine their locations at different times, and, in response to receiving order information from one device, sends its updated location to a computing system associated with the venue for display (’224 Patent, Abstract).
- Asserted Claims: The complaint asserts independent system claim 10 (’224 Patent, Compl. ¶97).
- Accused Features: The complaint accuses Wingstop's system, comprising its mobile application and backend servers, which allegedly provides a venue-specific application and tracks device locations to facilitate ordering (Compl. ¶¶103-105).
III. The Accused Instrumentality
Product Identification: The "Wingstop application," which the complaint defines as the "Accused Products" and characterizes as a "mobile-ordering solution" (Compl. ¶¶10, 50). This includes the application software and the devices on which it operates (Compl. ¶10, fn. 1).
Functionality and Market Context:
- The complaint alleges the application is "venue-specific," with functionality associated both with the Wingstop restaurant chain as a whole and with individual store locations (Compl. ¶51).
- A core accused functionality is location tracking. The application allegedly uses the smartphone's location to "Find Wingstop locations nearest to you" and to "Facilitate curbside orders" by alerting the restaurant when a user has arrived for pickup (Compl. ¶52). The complaint includes a screenshot of the app requesting location permissions for these purposes (Compl. p. 15).
- The complaint alleges the application is commercially significant, describing it as a "top Food & Drink" application that has processed a "significant amount of mobile orders" (Compl. ¶54).
IV. Analysis of Infringement Allegations
'729 Patent Infringement Allegations
| Claim Element (from Independent Claim 1) | Alleged Infringing Functionality | Complaint Citation | Patent Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| providing... a venue specific application program... for downloading into a patron-owned wireless communication device... | Wingstop provides its mobile application program for users to download onto their smartphones or tablets (Compl. ¶65). A screenshot shows the ordering interface of this application (Compl. p. 18). | ¶65 | col. 4:21-31 |
| connecting the wireless patron unit to a server... | The user's smartphone, running the application, connects to Wingstop's server via a Wi-Fi or cellular connection. | ¶66 | col. 5:12-13 |
| entering a patron order for at least one item or service... into the wireless patron unit | A user enters an order for menu items into the Wingstop application on their smartphone. | ¶67 | col. 4:29-31 |
| determining a current location of the wireless patron unit | The Wingstop application determines the location of the user's smartphone by accessing the device's location services. A screenshot shows the app prompting for location access and displaying the current location as a blue dot on a map (Compl. p. 19). | ¶68 | col. 5:31-36 |
| updating a status of the patron order, and the current location of the wireless patron unit when the patron moves... on the wireless patron unit | The application allegedly updates the order status (e.g., placed, in progress) and updates the device's location when the user moves, for purposes such as finding nearby stores or facilitating curbside pickup. | ¶¶70-72 | col. 4:59-62 |
| displaying the patron order on a display of the wireless patron unit | The application displays the patron's order in an order summary on the smartphone's screen (Compl. ¶74). | ¶74 | col. 4:59-62 |
- Identified Points of Contention:
- Scope Questions: A central question may be whether the term "venue", described in the patent in the context of a single resort, can be construed to read on a distributed chain of fast-food restaurants.
- Technical Questions: The analysis may focus on whether the accused product's function for "finding local stores" or signaling arrival for "curbside orders" meets the specific limitation of "updating... the current location of the wireless patron unit when the patron moves." A question for the court will be whether these discrete, often user-initiated, location checks perform the same function as the continuous-sounding tracking described by the claim.
'414 Patent Infringement Allegations
| Claim Element (from Independent Claim 8) | Alleged Infringing Functionality | Complaint Citation | Patent Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| providing... a venue-specific application to a mobile computing device... | Wingstop provides its mobile application to users' smartphones over wireless channels like cellular networks or WiFi. A screenshot shows the application's interface (Compl. p. 24). | ¶84 | col. 3:1-16 |
| communicating... to authenticate... a user of the venue-specific application... | The system authenticates a user through a login and password or other secure login methods. | ¶¶85-87 | col. 10:35-40 |
| receiving, by the one or more processors, location information from the mobile computing device | Wingstop's servers receive location data from the user's device via its native location services. | ¶88 | col. 15:9-13 |
| determining... a location of the mobile computing device at a first time based on the location information | Based on the received data, Wingstop's processors determine the location of the smartphone. | ¶90 | col. 15:9-13 |
| mapping, by the one or more processors, the location to a region that is associated with a venue | Wingstop's system maps the determined device location to a region associated with a venue, for example, by showing nearby stores on a map. A screenshot shows a map interface with Wingstop locations (Compl. p. 27). | ¶91 | col. 19:50-55 |
| receiving, from the mobile computing device, order information for the venue... | Wingstop's servers receive order information when a user selects items from the menu within the application. | ¶92 | col. 15:40-45 |
| receiving... updated location information from the mobile computing device | The servers allegedly receive updated location information as the user moves, for example, when approaching a store for curbside pickup. | ¶93 | col. 26:19-22 |
| determining... an updated location of the mobile computing device at a second time based on the updated location information | Wingstop's processors determine the device's new location at a subsequent time based on the updated information received. | ¶95 | col. 26:19-22 |
- Identified Points of Contention:
- Scope Questions: The construction of "mapping the location to a region that is associated with a venue" may be disputed. A key question will be whether plotting a location on a general map near a store constitutes mapping to a "region" in the manner taught by the patent, which also describes discrete "zones" within a venue (e.g., a pool area).
- Technical Questions: The dispute may turn on the evidence supporting the "receiving... updated location information" and "determining... an updated location... at a second time" elements. A court may need to determine if a single location check upon arrival for pickup constitutes a distinct "second" determination based on "updated" information, or if it is part of a single, continuous transaction.
V. Key Claim Terms for Construction
The Term: "venue-specific application" (Asserted in claims of '729, '414, and '224 Patents)
- Context and Importance: This term is foundational to the infringement case. Its construction will determine whether an application for a national restaurant chain can be considered "specific" to a "venue." Practitioners may focus on this term because Defendant could argue its application is a general-purpose tool for the entire Wingstop brand, not for a specific venue like a single store, whereas Plaintiff alleges it is specific to both the chain and individual stores (Compl. ¶51).
- Intrinsic Evidence for a Broader Interpretation: The specification defines a "resort" broadly to include "hospitality venues" such as "restaurants, bars, pools..." and states the system may be used in "various other venues including, but not limited to, stadiums, arenas, retail locations..." (’414 Patent, col. 4:1-6).
- Intrinsic Evidence for a Narrower Interpretation: The patent's detailed examples consistently focus on a single, geographically contiguous property like a resort, where a patron might move between distinct zones like a "beach, a pool lounge chair, or other various locations" within that single venue (’414 Patent, col. 4:26-28).
The Term: "updating... the current location... when the patron moves" ('729 Patent, Claim 1)
- Context and Importance: The temporal and causal language "when the patron moves" is critical for infringement. The dispute will likely center on whether the accused system's periodic or user-initiated location checks meet this requirement.
- Intrinsic Evidence for a Broader Interpretation: The specification describes a scenario where a patron "wishes to relocate from the beach to the pool," which requires the system to track that movement, suggesting that any determination of a new location after movement constitutes an "update" (’414 Patent, col. 6:7-11).
- Intrinsic Evidence for a Narrower Interpretation: The phrase "when the patron moves" could be interpreted to require a system that actively and automatically detects movement and pushes a location update, as opposed to a system that performs a location check only when prompted by a user action (e.g., tapping a "find nearby" button).
VI. Other Allegations
- Indirect Infringement: The complaint alleges induced infringement for all three patents. The factual basis alleged is that Defendant supplies the Wingstop application via app stores and provides instructions that encourage users to use the application's ordering and location-tracking features in an infringing manner (Compl. ¶¶60, 80, 101).
- Willful Infringement: The complaint alleges willful infringement based on knowledge of the patents obtained, at the latest, through the filing and service of the complaint itself. Plaintiff asserts that any continued infringement by Defendant after receiving this notice will be willful and deliberate (Compl. ¶¶61, 81, 102).
VII. Analyst’s Conclusion: Key Questions for the Case
This case appears to present two central questions for the court that combine issues of claim scope and technical function:
- A core issue will be one of definitional scope: Can the patent terms "venue" and "region", which are described in the specification primarily in the context of a single, contiguous location like a resort with distinct zones, be construed broadly enough to cover a national chain of geographically separate fast-food restaurants and the general areas surrounding them?
- A key evidentiary question will be one of functional operation: Does the accused application's method for finding nearby stores or facilitating curbside pickup perform the specific, sequential steps required by the claims—such as receiving updated location information to determine a location at a second time—or is there a fundamental mismatch in technical operation where the accused system performs only discrete, user-initiated location queries?