Advanced Soybean Yield Optimization Methods

Publication ID: 24-11856903_0006_PTD

Published: October 26, 2025

Category:Direct Improvements & Enhancements

Legal Citation

pr1or.art Inc., “Advanced Soybean Yield Optimization Methods,” Published Technical Disclosure No. 24-11856903_0006_PTD, Published October 26, 2025, available at https://archive.pr1or.art/24-11856903_0006_PTD

This technical disclosure describes improvements that would be readily apparent to a Person Having Ordinary Skill In The Art (PHOSITA) when considered in combination with the foundational architecture disclosed in U.S. Patent No. 11,856,903.

Background and Problem Solved

The original patent disclosed methods for manipulating yield of plants and identifying yield genes, but these methods had limitations in terms of seed yield, seed quality, and seed generation time. This invention addresses these limitations by providing enhanced methods for optimizing yield, enhancing seed quality, and reducing seed generation time.

Novelty and Inventive Step

The novelty of this invention lies in the combination of long day and short day growing conditions to maximize seed yield, the application of plant growth regulators to enhance flowering and seed set, and the use of transcriptional profiling to identify yield genes. The inventive step is the recognition of the importance of optimizing the sequence of long day and short day growing conditions, and the development of systems and methods that achieve this optimization.

Alternative Embodiments and Variations

Alternative embodiments of the invention include the use of different plant growth regulators, varying the duration and intensity of the short day growing conditions, and using different types of growth chambers and controllers. Variations of the invention include the application of the methods and systems to different types of short day plants, and the integration of the invention with other agricultural technologies.

Potential Commercial Applications and Market

The invention has significant commercial potential in the agricultural industry, particularly in the production of soybeans and other short day plants. The invention could be used to increase seed yield, enhance seed quality, and reduce seed generation time, leading to increased efficiency and profitability for farmers and agricultural companies.

CPC Classifications

Section	Class	Group
A	A01	A01H3/02
A	A01	A01H5/10
A	A01	A01H6/542

Section 103 Obviousness Analysis (PHOSITA)

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Field of Art

Agricultural biotechnology, specifically plant breeding and yield optimization techniques for short day plants like soybeans, involving controlled growth environments, plant physiology manipulation, and genetic yield enhancement

Person of Ordinary Skill (PHOSITA) Profile

A plant scientist or agricultural biotechnologist with expertise in plant breeding, growth chamber technologies, plant physiological responses to light/temperature conditions, and molecular techniques for yield optimization

Obviousness Rationale

A PHOSITA would recognize that the PTD's variations represent predictable extensions of the source patent's core methodology of manipulating soybean plant growth conditions to enhance yield. The disclosed techniques of applying plant growth regulators, modifying growth chamber sequences, and using transcriptional profiling are logical and incremental improvements that would be obvious to implement based on the foundational teachings of the source patent's yield manipulation methods.

Obvious Combinations & Variations

Source Patent Element

Method of growing soybean plants under controlled long day and short day conditions to induce flowering

PTD Variation

Adding plant growth regulators during short day conditions to enhance flowering and seed set

Obviousness Reasoning

Known plant physiological techniques for manipulating reproductive development, representing a predictable application of chemical interventions to enhance the base growth method

Source Patent Element

Restricting soil volume to enhance flowering and seed production

PTD Variation

Providing specific nutrient combinations to support seed development under restricted growth conditions

Obviousness Reasoning

Routine optimization of plant nutrition strategies that would be obvious to a skilled practitioner seeking to maximize yield under constrained growth environments

Source Patent Element

Controlling light exposure and temperature during different growth stages

PTD Variation

Implementing transcriptional profiling to identify genes associated with yield variations

Obviousness Reasoning

Standard molecular biology approach for understanding genetic mechanisms underlying physiological responses, representing a predictable scientific investigation method

Source Patent Element

Method focused on soybean plants as a short day crop

PTD Variation

Extending methodology to other short day plant varieties

Obviousness Reasoning

Routine extrapolation of agricultural techniques across similar plant physiological categories, demonstrating predictable technological transfer

35 U.S.C. § 103 Summary: Pursuant to 35 U.S.C. § 103, the variations disclosed in this publication would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art at the time of invention, as they represent incremental modifications to the yield manipulation methods disclosed in US Patent 11856903, utilizing known techniques and predictable combinations of prior art elements to achieve foreseeable improvements in plant breeding and yield optimization technologies.

Original Patent Information

Patent Number	US 11,856,903
Title	Methods for manipulating yield of plants and identifying yield genes
Assignee(s)	MONSANTO TECHNOLOGY LLC