How does the concept of “clear improvement” relate to the 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 concept of “clear improvement” in MPEP § 2106.06(b) relates to the Alice/Mayo test by potentially allowing claims to bypass parts of the test. The MPEP states:

“Although the Federal Circuit held these claims eligible at Step 2A as not being directed to abstract ideas, it would be reasonable for an examiner to have found these claims eligible at Pathway A based on the clear improvement, or at Pathway B (Step 2A) as not being directed to an abstract idea.“

This means that if a claim shows a clear improvement to technology or computer functionality, it might be found eligible without going through the entire Alice/Mayo test. The claim could be considered eligible at Pathway A (streamlined analysis) or at Step 2A of the Alice/Mayo test, depending on the examiner’s assessment of the improvement.