How does streamlined analysis differ from the full Alice/Mayo test?

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.

The streamlined analysis differs from the full Alice/Mayo test in several key ways:

1. Scope: Streamlined analysis is a quick assessment, while the Alice/Mayo test is a more comprehensive evaluation.
2. Application: Streamlined analysis is used for claims that clearly do not tie up a judicial exception, whereas the Alice/Mayo test is applied to all claims that may involve abstract ideas, laws of nature, or natural phenomena.
3. Steps: Streamlined analysis doesn’t require going through all the steps of the Alice/Mayo test, which includes identifying judicial exceptions and evaluating additional elements.
4. Outcome: Streamlined analysis leads directly to eligibility, while the Alice/Mayo test may result in either eligibility or ineligibility.

As stated in MPEP 2106.06: “A streamlined eligibility analysis can be used for a claim that may or may not recite a judicial exception but, when viewed as a whole, clearly does not seek to tie up any judicial exception such that others cannot practice it.” This approach allows for more efficient examination of clearly eligible claims.