This page is an FAQ based on guidance from the Manual of Patent Examining Procedure. It is provided as guidance, with links to the ground truth sources. This is information only: it is not legal advice.
“Mere instructions to apply an exception” refers to claim elements that do not integrate a judicial exception (such as an abstract idea) into a practical application or provide significantly more than the exception itself. The Supreme Court has clarified that to be patent-eligible, claims must do “‘more than simply stat[e] the [judicial exception] while adding the words ‘apply it’”.
As stated in MPEP 2106.05(f):
“[C]laims that amount to nothing more than an instruction to apply the abstract idea using a generic computer do not render an abstract idea eligible.”
This means that simply implementing an abstract idea on a computer or using generic computer components is not enough to make a claim patent-eligible. The claim must include additional elements that go beyond merely applying the exception.