The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit recently issued the decision of
Simio, LLC. V. FlexSim Software Products, Inc. (Dec. 29, 2020). In upholding the District Court’s decision that the software claims at issue were patent ineligible under 35 U.S.C. § 101, the Federal Circuit found that improving a user experience does not constitute an improvement to technology under Step 1 of the patent eligibility test enunciated in
Alice, and that the specification’s “focus” is taken into account when determining whether a claim is “directed to” an abstract idea under Step 1 of
Alice. This case highlights the need for a well-planned specification that anticipates a patent eligibility analysis and has a general focus on technical improvements, particularly directed to improved computer functionality for software and computer science patent applications.