DETAILED ACTION
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on May 20, 2026 has been entered.
Status of Claims
2. Claims 1-23 are pending. Claims 1, 3, 8, 12, 15, and 16-17 has been amended.
Response to Amendment
3. Applicant’s arguments filed 20 May 2026 have been fully considered however they are moot due to new grounds of rejection below initiated by applicant’s amendment.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
4. The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
5. Claims 1-23 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kotay et al. US Patent Application Publication No. 2018/0115892 (hereinafter Kotay) in view of Bradley et al. US Patent Application Publication No. 2019/0373469 (hereinafter Bradley) in further view of Holtmanns et al. US Patent Application Publication No. 2015/0334106 (hereinafter Holtmanns).
Regarding claim 1, Kotay discloses a method comprising:
“determining, by a first computing device, an update to at least one network credential, wherein the first computing device provides access to a network based on the at least one network credential” (see Kotay par. 0040, the computing device 104 (first computing device) can receive network credentials 122 from the network device 116. The computing device 104 can determine what user account information 124 is associated with the network device 116 and update the network credentials 122 stored in the database 114 accordingly);
based on determining that the second computing device would be prevented from accessing the network without the update, sending, by the first computing device to the second computing device, the update to the at least one network credential via a configuration session between the first computing device and the second computing device (see Kotay par. 0069, the user device 300 (e.g., user device 202a) determine a failure to connect to a first network 301 (e.g., the first network 207a) associated with a first SSID broadcast by an access point 304 (e.g., the access point 204) at 305. In an aspect, the failure to connect to the first network 301 by the user device 300 can be based on a changed SSID or new SSID being configured for the first time and the user device 300 not being configured to connect to the first network 301 via the changed SSID or new SSID. In an aspect, a new SSID can describe a SSID that is used for a newly configured network for which no previous SSID exists. A changed SSID can describe an SSID associated with a network that has been updated or modified. Based on the determined failure to connect to the first network 301, the user device 300 can connect to a second network 302 (e.g., second network 207b) associated with a second SSID broadcast by the access point 304 at 306. The second SSID can be static. In other words, the second SSID is not changed frequently, if at all. The second network 302 can be a secure network but with limited functionality. For example, the second network 302 can be limited to providing a communications link between the user device 300 and the remote computing device 303 (e.g., a network device, communication device 210, a provisioning server, etc.) for the purposes of updating the user device 300 to be able to connect to the first network 301);
Kotay does not explicitly discloses based on the update, determining, by the first computing device , that a second computing device that would be prevented from accessing the network without the update.
However, in analogues art, Bradley discloses based on the update, determining, by the first computing device , that a second computing device that would be prevented from accessing the network without the update (see Bradley par. 0104, at step 610, the computing device 102-1 can determine whether approval is received for the nearby computing device 102-2 to access the wireless network 130. Upon determining that approval is not received, the computing device 102-1 can prevent a password (e.g., via authentication credentials 136) from being provided to the nearby computing device 102-2, at step 612. Otherwise, if approval is received, the computing device 102-1 can provide the password to enable the nearby computing device 102-2 to access the wireless network 130, at step 614).
Therefore it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the application to incorporate the teachings of Bradley into the system of Kotay to include a computing device to prevent an unauthorized person in possession of the password from gaining access to potentially sensitive data that is accessible via the wireless network (see Bradley par. 0043).
Kotay in view of Bradley does not explicitly discloses wherein the second computing device was previously provisioned by the first computing device.
However, in analogues art, Holtmanns discloses wherein the second computing device was previously provisioned by the first computing device (see Holtmanns Abstract, pars. 0068-0071, a method may include receiving, at a first mobile apparatus, information about a second mobile apparatus. The first mobile apparatus may be provisioned with network access credential information to be transferred from the first mobile apparatus to the second mobile apparatus. The method may further include causing the information about the second mobile apparatus to be provided to a provisioning apparatus for the network. The method may additionally include receiving authorization form the provisioning apparatus to transfer the network access credential information from the first mobile apparatus to the second mobile apparatus).
Therefore it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the application to incorporate the teachings of Holtmanns into the system of Kotay and Bradley to receive authorization from the provisioning apparatus to transfer the network access credential information from the first mobile apparatus to the second mobile apparatus. The method of this example embodiment may also comprise, in response to receipt of the authorization, causing the network access credential information to be provided to the second mobile apparatus (see Holtmanns par. 0006).
Regarding claim 2, Kotay in view of Bradley in further view of Holtmanns discloses the method of claim 1,
Kotay further discloses receiving, by the first computing device from a third computing device, the update to the at least one network credential, wherein the third computing device is a user device associated with administrative rights to the first computing device (see Kotay pars. 0034-0035, the network device 116 (third computing device) can be in communication with a network, such as a network 105. As an example, the network device 116 can facilitate the connection of a device, such as the user device 102, to the network 105. As a further example, the network device 116 can be configured as a network gateway and/or an access point).
Regarding claim 3, Kotay in view of Bradley in further view of Holtmanns discloses the method of claim 1,
Holtmanns further discloses wherein the second computing device is further provisioned to communicate with the first computing device via a user device in communication with the first computing device during a device provisioning protocol session (see Holtmanns par. 0025, In order to access a network, such as a cellular network, a mobile apparatus may need to acquire network access credentials. Provision of network access credentials to a mobile apparatus may be controlled by a network operator. Accordingly, a user of a mobile apparatuses may need to acquire network access credentials when first purchasing or activating the mobile apparatus. Acquisition of a network access credentials may pose a hurdle for unsophisticated mobile apparatus users. As such, some example embodiments provide a novel system, method, apparatus, and computer program product for access credential provisioning).
Therefore it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the application to incorporate the teachings of Holtmanns into the system of Kotay and Bradley to receive authorization from the provisioning apparatus to transfer the network access credential information from the first mobile apparatus to the second mobile apparatus. The method of this example embodiment may also comprise, in response to receipt of the authorization, causing the network access credential information to be provided to the second mobile apparatus (see Holtmanns par. 0006).
Regarding claim 4, Kotay in view of Bradley in further view of Holtmanns discloses the method of claim 1,
Kotay further discloses wherein the at least one network credential comprises a service set identifier or a password (see Kotay par. 0004, The disclosed methods and systems can be applied to wireless communication devices (e.g., user devices) that can be configured with a network identifier (e.g., service set identifier (SSID)) and security element (e.g., password) associated with a wireless access point (AP) to connect to a wireless network).
Regarding claim 5, Kotay in view of Bradley in further view of Holtmanns discloses the method of claim 1,
Kotay further discloses wherein the second computing device, prior to receiving the update to the at least one network credential, would be prevented by the first computing device from accessing the network using the at least one network credential (see Kotay par. 0076, A user device (second computing device) (e.g., the user device 202a) can determine a failure to connect to a first network 401 (e.g., the first network 207a) associated with a first SSID broadcast by an access point 404 (e.g., the access point 204) at 405. In an aspect, the failure to connect the user device 400 to the first network 401 can be based on a changed SSID or new SSID and the user device 400 not being configured to connect to the first network 401 via the changed SSID or new SSID).
Regarding claim 6, Kotay in view of Bradley in further view of Holtmanns discloses the method of claim 1,
Kotay further discloses wherein the wherein the second computing device, based on the received update to the at least one network credential, is configured to access the network using the at least one network credential (see Kotay par. 0037, the network device 116 can be in communication with the computing device 104 to provide the computing device 104 with up-to-date network credentials 122. The network device 116 can be configured to transmit the network credentials 122 to the computing device 104 upon detecting a change in the network credentials 122 or the network device 116 can transmit the network credentials 122 to the computing device 104 periodically (e.g., every hour, every day, etc . . . ).
Regarding claim 7, Kotay in view of Bradley in further view of Holtmanns discloses the method of claim 1,
Holtmanns further discloses based on a configuration advertisement received by the second computing device, receiving, at the first computing device from the second computing device, a request to initiate the configuration session, wherein the configuration advertisement identifies the first computing device (see Holtmanns par. 0062, the setup module 138 may be configured to cause information about the second mobile apparatus 104 to be provided to the first mobile apparatus 102 via the local connection 106. The setup module 138 may, for example, provide the information about the second mobile apparatus 104 to the first mobile apparatus 102 in response to a request received from the first mobile apparatus 102).
Therefore it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the application to incorporate the teachings of Holtmanns into the system of Kotay and Bradley to receive authorization from the provisioning apparatus to transfer the network access credential information from the first mobile apparatus to the second mobile apparatus. The method of this example embodiment may also comprise, in response to receipt of the authorization, causing the network access credential information to be provided to the second mobile apparatus (see Holtmanns par. 0006).
Regarding claim 8, Kotay discloses a method comprising:
“receiving, via the configuration session, the update to the at least one network credential” (see Kotay par. 0039, the computing device 104 can obtain the device identifier 108 from the user device 102 and retrieve information from the database 114, such as the address element 110 and/or the service elements 112. As another example, the computing device 104 can obtain the address element 110 from the user device 102 and can retrieve the service element 112 from the database 114, or vice versa. As another example, the computing device 104 can obtain the device identifier 108 from the user device 102 and can retrieve user account information and/or network credentials associated with the network device 116); and
“sending, to the second computing device, a request to join the network provided by the second computing device, wherein the request comprises the at least one network credential” (see Kotay par. 0037, the network device 116 can be in communication with the computing device 104 to provide the computing device 104 with up-to-date network credentials 122. The network device 116 can be configured to transmit the network credentials 122 to the computing device 104 upon detecting a change in the network credentials 122 or the network device 116 can transmit the network credentials 122 to the computing device 104 periodically (e.g., every hour, every day, etc . . . ). In an aspect, the network device 116 can transmit the identifier 118 with the network credentials 122 to aid in proper updating of data stored in the database 114. In an aspect, the computing device 104 can be a server for communicating with the user device 102 through the network 105 via the network device 116);
Kotay does not explicitly discloses receiving, by a first computing device from a second computing device, a configuration advertisement, wherein the second computing device sends the configuration advertisement based on an update to at least one network credential; wherein, based on an update to at least one network credential and, a determination, by the second computing device, that the first computing device would be prevented from accessing a network provided by the second computing device without the update, the second computing device sends the configuration advertisement, and wherein the first computing device was previously provisioned by the second computing device;.
However, in analogues art, Bradley discloses receiving, by a first computing device from a second computing device, a configuration advertisement, wherein the second computing device sends the configuration advertisement based on an update to at least one network credential (see Bradley pars. 0187, 0158-0159, the method 1750 begins at step 1752, where the first computing device 1602 receives, from a second computing device 1602, an advertisement packet 1620, software entities can execute on each of the computing devices 1602 and cause advertisement packets 1620 to be periodically transmitted by the computing device 1602. In particular, the advertisement packets 1620 can be specific to the computing device 1602, and can be detected and processed by nearby computing devices 1602—if any—that have been authorized to identify when the computing device 1602 is in proximity. In turn, the nearby computing device 1602 can perform at least one action in response to detecting that the computing device 1602 is in proximity to the nearby computing device 1602); wherein, based on an update to at least one network credential and, a determination, by the second computing device, that the first computing device would be prevented from accessing a network provided by the second computing device without the update (see Bradley par. 0104, at step 610, the computing device 102-1 can determine whether approval is received for the nearby computing device 102-2 to access the wireless network 130. Upon determining that approval is not received, the computing device 102-1 can prevent a password (e.g., via authentication credentials 136) from being provided to the nearby computing device 102-2, at step 612. Otherwise, if approval is received, the computing device 102-1 can provide the password to enable the nearby computing device 102-2 to access the wireless network 130, at step 614).
Therefore it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the application to incorporate the teachings of Bradley into the system of Kotay to include a computing device to prevent an unauthorized person in possession of the password from gaining access to potentially sensitive data that is accessible via the wireless network (see Bradley par. 0043).
Kotay in view of Bradley does not discloses wherein the first computing device was previously provisioned by the second computing device; sending, to the second computing device, based on the configuration advertisement indicating the configuration advertisement originated from the first computing device, a request to initiate a configuration session between the first computing device and the second computing device, wherein the configuration session is a device provisioning protocol session.
However, in analogues art, Holtmanns discloses wherein the first computing device was previously provisioned by the second computing device (see Holtmanns par. 0067, In an instance in which the provisioning module 148 determines to authorize transfer of the network access credential information, the provisioning module 148 may update the subscriber database 110 to reflect a correlation between the network access credential information and an identifier of the second mobile apparatus 104. The provisioning module 148 may be further configured, in an instance in which the transfer of the network access credential information has been authorized, to cause authorization for the transfer to be provided to the first mobile apparatus 102); sending, to the second computing device, based on the configuration advertisement indicating the configuration advertisement originated from the first computing device, a request to initiate a configuration session between the first computing device and the second computing device, wherein the configuration session is a device provisioning protocol session (see Holtmanns pars. 0062-0064, the setup module 138 may be configured to cause information about the second mobile apparatus 104 to be provided to the first mobile apparatus 102 via the local connection 106. The setup module 138 may, for example, provide the information about the second mobile apparatus 104 to the first mobile apparatus 102 in response to a request received from the first mobile apparatus 102. the setup module 138 may sign the at least a portion of the information about the second mobile apparatus 104, for example, using the trusted device identity of the second mobile apparatus 102, prior to providing the information to the first mobile apparatus 102. In this regard, signing the information may serve to prevent tampering with the information and/or enable authentication of the origin of the information by the first mobile apparatus 102 and/or by the provisioning server 108. In embodiments wherein the setup module 138 is configured to sign the information about the second mobile apparatus 104, the setup module 138 may sign the information in a secure environment of the second mobile apparatus 104).
Therefore it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the application to incorporate the teachings of Holtmanns into the system of Kotay and Bradley to receive authorization from the provisioning apparatus to transfer the network access credential information from the first mobile apparatus to the second mobile apparatus. The method of this example embodiment may also comprise, in response to receipt of the authorization, causing the network access credential information to be provided to the second mobile apparatus (see Holtmanns par. 0006).
Regarding claim 9, Kotay in view of Bradley in further view of Holtmanns discloses the method of claim 8,
Kotay further discloses receiving, by the second computing device from a third computing device, the update to the at least one network credential, wherein the third computing device is a user device associated with administrative rights to the second computing device (see Kotay pars. 0034-0035, the network device 116 (third computing device) can be in communication with a network, such as a network 105. As an example, the network device 116 can facilitate the connection of a device, such as the user device 102, to the network 105. As a further example, the network device 116 can be configured as a network gateway and/or an access point).
Regarding claim 10, Kotay in view of Bradley in further view of Holtmanns discloses the method of claim 8,
Kotay further discloses wherein the first computing device, prior to receiving the update to the at least one network credential, would be prevented by the second computing device from accessing the network using the at least one network credential (see Kotay par. 0076, A user device (second computing device) (e.g., the user device 202a) can determine a failure to connect to a first network 401 (e.g., the first network 207a) associated with a first SSID broadcast by an access point 404 (e.g., the access point 204) at 405. In an aspect, the failure to connect the user device 400 to the first network 401 can be based on a changed SSID or new SSID and the user device 400 not being configured to connect to the first network 401 via the changed SSID or new SSID).
Regarding claim 11, Kotay in view of Bradley in further view of Holtmanns discloses the method of claim 8,
Holtmanns further discloses wherein the first computing device is provisioned to communicate with the second computing device via a user device in communication with the second computing device during the device provisioning protocol session (see Holtmanns par. 0025, In order to access a network, such as a cellular network, a mobile apparatus may need to acquire network access credentials. Provision of network access credentials to a mobile apparatus may be controlled by a network operator. Accordingly, a user of a mobile apparatuses may need to acquire network access credentials when first purchasing or activating the mobile apparatus. Acquisition of a network access credentials may pose a hurdle for unsophisticated mobile apparatus users. As such, some example embodiments provide a novel system, method, apparatus, and computer program product for access credential provisioning).
Therefore it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the application to incorporate the teachings of Holtmanns into the system of Kotay and Bradley to receive authorization from the provisioning apparatus to transfer the network access credential information from the first mobile apparatus to the second mobile apparatus. The method of this example embodiment may also comprise, in response to receipt of the authorization, causing the network access credential information to be provided to the second mobile apparatus (see Holtmanns par. 0006).
Regarding claim 12, Kotay in view of Bradley in further view of Holtmanns discloses the method of claim 8,
Kotay further discloses wherein the first computing device is provisioned to communicate with the second computing device via the device provisioning protocol session and a user device in communication with the second computing device (see Kotay, par. 0070, 0089, the access point 304 can facilitate a connection between the user device 300 and a remote computing device 303 (e.g., communication device 210, provisioning server, etc.) at 307. In an aspect, the connection between the user device 300 and the remote computing device 303 can be a secure connection. The connection between the user device 300 and the remote computing device 303 can be protected using security protocols, such as Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP), Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA), WPA2, and/or the like).
Regarding claim 13, Kotay in view of Bradley in further view of Holtmanns discloses the method of claim 8,
Kotay further discloses wherein the at least one network credential comprises a service set identifier or a password (see Kotay par. 0004, The disclosed methods and systems can be applied to wireless communication devices (e.g., user devices) that can be configured with a network identifier (e.g., service set identifier (SSID)) and security element (e.g., password) associated with a wireless access point (AP) to connect to a wireless network).
Regarding claim 14, Kotay in view of Bradley in further view of Holtmanns discloses the method of claim 8,
Bradley further discloses wherein the configuration advertisement comprises a configuration identifier that identifies at least one of: the second computing device or a configuration channel for the configuration session (see Bradley par. 0130, the computing device 102-1 can be associated with user information 120. In particular, the computing device 102-1 can utilize a hash algorithm (to which the nearby computing device 102-2 also has access to) to generate a unique hash value for the advertisement and the user information 120 that can be transmitted to the nearby computing device 102-2 as a hashed message. In turn, upon receiving the hashed message, the nearby computing device 102-2 can refer to a hash table that provides a correlation of the unique hash value to the user information 120 associated with the computing device 102-1 to identify the hashed advertisement as being provided by a known computing device 102 (e.g., a friend, a relative, a colleague, etc.)).
Therefore it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the application to incorporate the teachings of Bradley into the system of Kotay to include a computing device to prevent an unauthorized person in possession of the password from gaining access to potentially sensitive data that is accessible via the wireless network (see Bradley par. 0043).
Regarding claim 15, Kotay discloses a method comprising:
“determining, by a first computing device, updated network credentials, wherein the first computing device is configured to generate a network accessible via the updated network credentials” (see Kotay par. 0040, the computing device 104 (first computing device) can receive network credentials 122 from the network device 116. The computing device 104 can determine what user account information 124 is associated with the network device 116 and update the network credentials 122 stored in the database 114 accordingly);
“sending, via the configuration session, the updated network credentials to the second computing device” (see Kotay par. 0037, the network device 116 can be in communication with the computing device 104 to provide the computing device 104 with up-to-date network credentials 122. The network device 116 can be configured to transmit the network credentials 122 to the computing device 104 upon detecting a change in the network credentials 122 or the network device 116 can transmit the network credentials 122 to the computing device 104 periodically (e.g., every hour, every day, etc . . . ). In an aspect, the network device 116 can transmit the identifier 118 with the network credentials 122 to aid in proper updating of data stored in the database 114. In an aspect, the computing device 104 can be a server for communicating with the user device 102 through the network 105 via the network device 116);
Kotay does not explicitly discloses receiving, from a second computing device, a configuration advertisement, wherein the second computing device was previously provisioned by the first computing device; based on a determination by the first computing device that the second computing device would be prevented from accessing the network without the updated network credential.
However, in analogues art, Bradley discloses receiving, from a second computing device, a configuration advertisement (see Bradley pars. 0187, 0158-0159, the method 1750 begins at step 1752, where the first computing device 1602 receives, from a second computing device 1602, an advertisement packet 1620. software entities can execute on each of the computing devices 1602 and cause advertisement packets 1620 to be periodically transmitted by the computing device 1602. In particular, the advertisement packets 1620 can be specific to the computing device 1602, and can be detected and processed by nearby computing devices 1602—if any—that have been authorized to identify when the computing device 1602 is in proximity. In turn, the nearby computing device 1602 can perform at least one action in response to detecting that the computing device 1602 is in proximity to the nearby computing device 1602); based on a determination by the first computing device that the second computing device would be prevented from accessing the network without the updated network credential (see Bradley par. 0104, at step 610, the computing device 102-1 can determine whether approval is received for the nearby computing device 102-2 to access the wireless network 130. Upon determining that approval is not received, the computing device 102-1 can prevent a password (e.g., via authentication credentials 136) from being provided to the nearby computing device 102-2, at step 612. Otherwise, if approval is received, the computing device 102-1 can provide the password to enable the nearby computing device 102-2 to access the wireless network 130, at step 614).
Therefore it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the application to incorporate the teachings of Bradley into the system of Kotay to include a computing device to prevent an unauthorized person in possession of the password from gaining access to potentially sensitive data that is accessible via the wireless network (see Bradley par. 0043).
Kotay in view of Bradley does not explicitly discloses wherein the second computing device was previously provisioned by the first computing device; sending, to the second computing device a request to initiate a configuration session, wherein the configuration session is a device provisioning protocol session.
However, in analogues art, Holtmanns discloses wherein the second computing device was previously provisioned by the first computing device (see Holtmanns Abstract, pars. 0068-0071, a method may include receiving, at a first mobile apparatus, information about a second mobile apparatus. The first mobile apparatus may be provisioned with network access credential information to be transferred from the first mobile apparatus to the second mobile apparatus. The method may further include causing the information about the second mobile apparatus to be provided to a provisioning apparatus for the network. The method may additionally include receiving authorization form the provisioning apparatus to transfer the network access credential information from the first mobile apparatus to the second mobile apparatus); sending, to the second computing device a request to initiate a configuration session, wherein the configuration session is a device provisioning protocol session (see Holtmanns pars. 0062-0064, the setup module 138 may be configured to cause information about the second mobile apparatus 104 to be provided to the first mobile apparatus 102 via the local connection 106. The setup module 138 may, for example, provide the information about the second mobile apparatus 104 to the first mobile apparatus 102 in response to a request received from the first mobile apparatus 102. the setup module 138 may sign the at least a portion of the information about the second mobile apparatus 104, for example, using the trusted device identity of the second mobile apparatus 102, prior to providing the information to the first mobile apparatus 102. In this regard, signing the information may serve to prevent tampering with the information and/or enable authentication of the origin of the information by the first mobile apparatus 102 and/or by the provisioning server 108. In embodiments wherein the setup module 138 is configured to sign the information about the second mobile apparatus 104, the setup module 138 may sign the information in a secure environment of the second mobile apparatus 104).
Therefore it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the application to incorporate the teachings of Holtmanns into the system of Kotay and Bradley to receive authorization from the provisioning apparatus to transfer the network access credential information from the first mobile apparatus to the second mobile apparatus. The method of this example embodiment may also comprise, in response to receipt of the authorization, causing the network access credential information to be provided to the second mobile apparatus (see Holtmanns par. 0006).
Regarding claim 16, Kotay in view of Bradley in further view of Holtmanns discloses the method of claim 15,
Holtmanns further discloses initiating the configuration session with the second computing device (see Holtmanns par. 0062, the setup module 138 may be configured to cause information about the second mobile apparatus 104 to be provided to the first mobile apparatus 102 via the local connection 106. The setup module 138 may, for example, provide the information about the second mobile apparatus 104 to the first mobile apparatus 102 in response to a request received from the first mobile apparatus 102).
Therefore it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the application to incorporate the teachings of Holtmanns into the system of Kotay and Bradley to receive authorization from the provisioning apparatus to transfer the network access credential information from the first mobile apparatus to the second mobile apparatus. The method of this example embodiment may also comprise, in response to receipt of the authorization, causing the network access credential information to be provided to the second mobile apparatus (see Holtmanns par. 0006).
Regarding claim 17, Kotay in view of Bradley in further view of Holtmanns discloses the method of claim 15,
Kotay further discloses wherein the second computing device is provisioned to communicate with the first computing device via a device provisioning protocol session and a user device in communication with the first computing device (see Kotay, par. 0070, 0089, the access point 304 can facilitate a connection between the user device 300 and a remote computing device 303 (e.g., communication device 210, provisioning server, etc.) at 307. In an aspect, the connection between the user device 300 and the remote computing device 303 can be a secure connection. The connection between the user device 300 and the remote computing device 303 can be protected using security protocols, such as Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP), Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA), WPA2, and/or the like).
Regarding claim 18, Kotay in view of Bradley in further view of Holtmanns the method of claim 15,
Kotay further discloses wherein the second computing device sends the configuration advertisement to the first computing device based on an unsuccessful attempt to join the network using invalid network credentials (see Kotay par. 0077, When a secure connection between the user device 400 and the remote computing device 403 is established, the user device 400 can transmit the token to the remote computing device 403 and the remote computing device 403 can validate (e.g., approve, accept, authorize, etc.) the token at 408. Alternatively, the remote computing device 403 can revoke, deny, or otherwise reject the token by determining that the token is invalid and designating the token as invalid, thus terminating any further attempt by the user device 400 to connect to the first network 401).
Regarding claim 19, Kotay in view of Bradley in further view of Holtmanns discloses the method of claim 15,
Bradley further discloses wherein the configuration advertisement comprises a hash of a configuration identifier (see Bradley par. 0130, upon receiving the hashed message, the nearby computing device 102-2 can refer to a hash table that provides a correlation of the unique hash value to the user information 120 associated with the computing device 102-1 to identify the hashed advertisement as being provided by a known computing device 102 (e.g., a friend, a relative, a colleague, etc.)).
Therefore it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the application to incorporate the teachings of Bradley into the system of Kotay to include a computing device to prevent an unauthorized person in possession of the password from gaining access to potentially sensitive data that is accessible via the wireless network (see Bradley par. 0043).
Regarding claim 20, Kotay in view of Bradley in further view of Holtmanns discloses the method of claim 15,
Bradley further discloses determining, by the first computing device based on the hash of the configuration identifier, that the configuration advertisement originated from the second computing device (see Bradley par. 0130, he computing device 102-1 can be associated with user information 120. In particular, the computing device 102-1 can utilize a hash algorithm (to which the nearby computing device 102-2 also has access to) to generate a unique hash value for the advertisement and the user information 120 that can be transmitted to the nearby computing device 102-2 as a hashed message).
Therefore it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the application to incorporate the teachings of Bradley into the system of Kotay to include a computing device to prevent an unauthorized person in possession of the password from gaining access to potentially sensitive data that is accessible via the wireless network (see Bradley par. 0043).
Regarding claims 21-23, Kotay in view of Bradley in further view of Holtmanns in further view of Bradley discloses the method of claim 1, the method of claim 8, the method of claim 15,
Kotay further discloses wherein determining, by the first computing device, the update to at least one network credential includes determining an update to at least one of a network name or a network password (see Kotay par. 0026, connecting a wireless communication device to a wireless network, despite a change in a network credential associated with the wireless network, without requiring manual reconfiguration of the wireless communication device. Wireless communication devices can be provisioned with a network identifier (e.g., service set identifier (SSID)) and security element (e.g., password) associated with a wireless access point (AP) to connect to a wireless network. A wireless communication device can be configured to detect an inability to connect to a wireless network provided by an access point, automatically connect to the access point using a fixed (e.g., permanent, non-changing, etc.) identifier to access a dedicated network for obtaining network credentials needed to access the wireless network without manually configuring such network credentials on the wireless communication device).
Conclusion
6. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to SAMUEL AMBAYE whose telephone number is (571)270-7635. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9:00 AM - 6:00 PM.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Jeffrey Pwu can be reached at (571) 272-6798. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/SAMUEL AMBAYE/Examiner, Art Unit 2433
/JEFFREY C PWU/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2433
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