Opinion ID: 2791337
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: “Disparate Databases”

Text: All of the asserted claims of the ’006, ’861 and ’864 patents contain a limitation calling for “disparate databases.” The district court examined the intrinsic record and, finding the prosecution history compelling, construed the phrase to mean databases having: (1) an absence of compatible keys; and (2) an absence of record ID columns of similar value; and (3) an absence of record ID columns of similar format in the schemas or structures that would otherwise enable linking data. Clarification Order at . VSi argues that the plain and ordinary meaning of “disparate databases” is simply “incompatible databases having different schemas.” It claims that both intrinsic and extrinsic evidence equates “disparate databases” with “incompatible databases.” VSi then relies on its expert’s testimony to show that incompatible databases are simply those with different schemas. VSi also contends that its position is consistent with and fully supported by a stipulation it entered into with IBM and Oracle in a prior litigation involving these same patents, in which the parties agreed that “disparate databases” meant “incompatible databases having different schemas.” VSi additionally claims that defendants’ own internal marketing documents support VSi’s proposed construction. Finally, VSi contends that nothing in the prosecution history amounts to such a clear disavowal or definition as to warrant the more narrow construction made by the district court. The defendants counter with the argument that the phrase “disparate databases” is of indeterminate scope, and, thus, has no plain and ordinary meaning. Defendants also take issue with VSi’s argument that defendants’ own internal documents reflect VSi’s proposed construction and further contend that whatever their internal documents say, both they and the prior stipulation should carry little weight. Additionally, defendants argue that VASUDEVAN SOFTWARE, INC. v. MICROSTRATEGY, INC. 9 the prosecution history evinces a clear intent to define “disparate databases” in the way the district court construed the term. Finally, TIBCO denies that the phrase “incompatible databases” is equivalent to “disparate databases.” TIBCO Resp. Br. at 33. Addressing first VSi’s argument that the plain and ordinary meaning of “disparate databases” is “incompatible databases having different schemas,” we conclude that while “disparate databases” may be considered “incompatible databases,” the plain and ordinary meaning leaves open the question of how “disparate” or “incompatible” the databases may be. VSi points to the Summary of the Invention, which describes the invention in terms of its ability to access “a plurality of incompatible source databases.” ’006 patent col.2 ll.38–42 (emphases added). VSi continues by citing passages of the specification that refer to incompatible databases as being of different types and having different data. Id. col.3 ll.1–3, ll.11–16. But nowhere in the specification is there any description of what is meant by “disparate databases” in terms of how disparate or incompatible the databases must be. VSi argues in this appeal that its expert, Dr. McLeod, stated that databases may be incompatible if they merely have different schemas. The district court did not rely on this testimony. But, more importantly, Dr. McLeod did not claim that this was the only way databases could be disparate. Indeed, at deposition, he conceded that the meaning of “disparate databases” depends on the “context” and does not have a “consistent use.” J.A. 5655; J.A. 5581; see also Gemalto S.A. v. HTC Corp., 754 F.3d 1364, 1371 (Fed. Cir. 2014) (confirming that a claim term has no plain and ordinary meaning from the testimony of people skilled in the art). VSi also argues that its construction is supported by its stipulation with IBM and Oracle, but the fact that a claim construction was agreed to in the context of a differ- 10 VASUDEVAN SOFTWARE, INC. v. MICROSTRATEGY, INC. ent litigation is of little relevance or probative value here. IBM and Oracle’s accused products may have functioned in a manner for which the precise scope of the “disparate databases” limitation was immaterial. Moreover, because defendants “were not parties” to the IBM and Oracle stipulation, “they are not bound by it.” Fuji Photo Film Co. v. Int’l Trade Comm’n, 386 F.3d 1095, 1101 (Fed. Cir. 2004). Finally, VSi looks to defendants’ marketing materials as informing the plain and ordinary meaning of the term “disparate databases.” But that evidence, which again was not relied on by the district court, is of scant import. Language used in marketing materials directed to potential customers can mean something quite different from the language used in a patent directed to persons skilled in the art. See Scantibodies Lab., Inc. v. Immutopics, Inc., 374 F. App’x 968, 971 (Fed. Cir. 2010). Moreover, the marketing materials referenced by VSi are not contemporaneous with the patents-in-suit. Because the specification, the stipulation and the referenced marketing materials leave uncertain the full scope and meaning of the term “disparate databases,” we turn next to the prosecution history, which was central to the district court’s claim construction. In responding to a rejection during prosecution, applicant made the following statement: The disparate nature of the above databases re- fers to an absence of compatible keys or record identifier (ID) columns of similar value or format in the schemas or structures of the database that would otherwise enable linking data within the constituent databases. An example of such a common key value is a social security number that would enable linking or relational databases “join operations” on an individual’s personnel data with his or her insurance plan. In embodiments of Ap- VASUDEVAN SOFTWARE, INC. v. MICROSTRATEGY, INC. 11 plicant’s invention, such a common key value is not necessary. This disparate nature extends, for example, to the type of database (e.g. Oracle, IBM DB2, Microsoft SQL Server or Object Databases) and the structure, schema, and nature of the da- tabases (i.e. type of data fields in various tables of the constituent databases). ’006 patent Prosecution History, Applicant’s Amendments and Remarks of Oct. 30, 2003, at 19 (emphasis in original). The district court determined that this statement was a “clear” and “unmistakable” definition of “disparate databases.” Initial Order at . In its Clarification Order, the district court ruled that this statement limits disparate databases to ones that have an absence of compatible keys; and an absence of record ID columns of similar value; and an absence of record ID columns of similar format in the schemas. On appeal, VSi asserts that the applicant in this statement was not defining “disparate databases,” and was instead listing examples of “disparate databases.” Additionally, VSi claims that the applicant did not rely on the statement in the prosecution history to distinguish the prior art. VSi further argues that even were this statement definitional, the district court misconstrued it: the prosecution history only meant that two databases were disparate if they had an absence of compatible keys; or an absence of record ID columns of similar value; or an absence of record ID columns of similar format. Finally, VSi argues that it certainly is not “clear” that the applicant intended to define “disparate databases” in the way the district court construed it. Defendants respond that the above statement was definitional and the applicant relied on this definition in distinguishing the prior art. They further argue that the interpretation of the prosecution history adopted in the 12 VASUDEVAN SOFTWARE, INC. v. MICROSTRATEGY, INC. district court’s Clarification Order is, in the context of the prosecution history, the only reasonable one. Finally, defendants argue that, because “disparate databases” has no plain and ordinary meaning, the prosecution history does not need to be clear in order to be limiting. We are not persuaded by VSi’s argument. First, we disagree with VSi’s position that the statement in the prosecution history was not definitional. There, applicant stated that the disparate nature “refers to” an absence of common keys or record ID columns of similar value or format. An applicant’s use of the phrase “refers to” generally indicates an intention to define a term. See, e.g., In re Imes, 778 F.3d 1250, 1252–53 (Fed. Cir. 2015); Microsoft Corp. v. Int’l Trade Comm’n, 731 F.3d 1354, 1360 (Fed. Cir. 2013); Linear Tech. Corp. v. Int’l Trade Comm’n, 566 F.3d 1049, 1054 (Fed. Cir. 2009). Abbott Labs. v. Syntron Bioresearch, Inc., 334 F.3d 1343, 1354– 55 (Fed. Cir. 2003), cited by VSi, is the exception that proves the rule. In Abbott, the specification provided “two alternative definitions” for a claim term, both of which were introduced by the word “refers.” 334 F.3d at 1354. This court thus found that the specification could not have meant for both to be binding and, therefore, lacked the clarity necessary to overcome the plain and ordinary meaning of the term. See id. Here, by contrast, the prosecution history only provides one definition and this meaning does not conflict with the plain and ordinary meaning of the term. Additionally, the prosecution history confirms that the applicant was defining “disparate databases” when he said “[t]he disparate nature of the above databases refers to an absence of compatible keys or record identifier (ID) columns of similar value or format . . .” as he later relied on this definition in distinguishing the prior art. The Examiner originally rejected the pending claims over U.S. Patent No. 6,516,324 (“Jones”). In response, the applicant amended all the independent claims to recite “disparate VASUDEVAN SOFTWARE, INC. v. MICROSTRATEGY, INC. 13 databases.” ’006 patent Prosecution History, Amendments and Remarks of Oct. 30, 2003, at 2–17. In the associated remarks, the applicant set out three sections: “A. Applicant’s Invention”; “B. Jones et al.”; and “C. Applicant’s Claimed Invention Is Not Obvious Over Jones et al.” Id. at 19–21. In section A, the applicant noted that the “disparate nature” of the claimed invention “refers to an absence of compatible keys” etc. Id. at 19. He further noted that “[i]n embodiments of Applicant’s invention, such a common key value is not necessary.” Id. (emphasis in original). Then, in section B, he explained that Jones “rel[ied] on common keys.” Id. at 20. Finally, in section C, the applicant explained that Jones “does not disclose, teach, or suggest embodiments of Applicant’s invention” because Jones does not disclose “accessing a plurality of disparate digital databases (see A and B above).” Id. at 21. Taken in its entirety, the prosecution history is clear that the applicant was relying on the provided definition of “disparate databases,” which required an absence of, inter alia, common keys, and distinguished his invention over Jones based on Jones’s reliance on common keys. Though it is true that the applicant distinguished Jones on other grounds as well, this does not prevent us from using this particular distinction over Jones to construe the phrase “disparate databases.” See Andersen Corp. v. Fiber Composites, LLC, 474 F.3d 1361, 1374 (Fed. Cir. 2007). Thus, we conclude that the district court properly found that the statement in the prosecution history was definitional. We also reject VSi’s claim that the district court misconstrued the prosecution history. The statement in the prosecution history that “disparate databases” refers to an absence of compatible keys or record ID columns of similar value or format can, theoretically, be interpreted in two ways: that the absence of any one of these characteristics makes databases disparate (the “disjunctive interpretation”) or that only the absence of all of these 14 VASUDEVAN SOFTWARE, INC. v. MICROSTRATEGY, INC. characteristics makes them disparate (the “conjunctive interpretation”). We conclude that the manner in which the applicant distinguished Jones dictates the conjunctive interpretation. After noting that “[i]n embodiments of Applicant’s invention . . . a common key value is not necessary,” the applicant explained that the databases accessed by Jones relied on common keys. The applicant said nothing about the databases in Jones lacking record ID columns of similar value or format. The context indicates that the applicant was distinguishing Jones based on the fact that Jones utilized common keys, whereas the claimed invention does not. This indicates that the presence of common keys, alone, sufficed to make the databases in Jones distinguishable from the claimed “disparate databases.” This is only consistent with the conjunctive interpretation. According to the disjunctive interpretation, the presence of common keys, alone, would not necessarily preclude two databases from being disparate: they could still be disparate so long as they lacked record ID columns of similar value or format. The conjunctive interpretation is also consistent with proper grammar, where the phrase “‘not A, B, or C’ means ‘not A, not B, and not c.’” A. Scalia &. B. Garner, Reading Law: The Interpretation of Legal Texts 119 (2012) (citing DeMorgan’s theorem). Thus, proper grammar supports the district court’s conclusion that disparate databases— which, as explained in the prosecution history, means an “absence of [A] compatible keys or [B] record identifier (ID) columns of similar value or [C] format”—should be understood as [A] an absence of compatible keys; and [B] an absence of record ID columns of similar value; and [C] an absence of record ID columns of similar format. Taken on its own, the applicant’s statement that “[t]his disparate nature extends, for example, to the type of database (e.g. Oracle, IBM DB2, Microsoft SQL Server or Object Databases) and the structure, schema, and nature of the database . . . ” might be read to suggest that VASUDEVAN SOFTWARE, INC. v. MICROSTRATEGY, INC. 15 two databases can be disparate based solely on the vendor of the database. But those are only cited as examples and follow the preceding sentences, which make abundantly clear that it is the absence of compatible keys etc., not any particular difference among the databases of different manufacturers, that is essential. Such a reading also conflicts with the applicant’s statement during reexamination that “the type of protocol used to connect to one or more databases does not imply anything about the disparateness of those databases.” Reexam Control No. 95/000,698, Patent Owner’s Response of Feb. 11, 2013, at 32. Finally, it conflicts with the testimony of Dr. Cárdenas, VSi’s expert, that the “key point” of the invention is joining disparate databases that are not only disparate “because the manufacturers are different,” but also because the data values and data type are different. J.A. 2970. For these reasons, we affirm the district court’s construction of “disparate databases” and its entry of the stipulated judgment of non-infringement predicated thereon.