DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Response to Amendment
The examiner has taken notice that claims 1-7, 9, 10, 12-14 and 18-20 have been amended to more particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter of the invention. Claims 1-20 are currently pending in the present application.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments, see response, filed 07/01/2025, with respect to the rejection(s) of claim(s) 1-20 have been fully considered and are persuasive. Therefore, the rejection has been withdrawn. However, upon further consideration, a new ground(s) of rejection is made in view of Krishan’s, Yao and Goswami.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claim(s) 1, 2, 5, 12-13, 15-17 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Krishan (US 2020/0127916; hereinafter Krishan) in view of Yao et al. (US 20210021494; hereinafter Yao).
Regarding claim 1, Krishan teaches an apparatus, comprising: one or more processors; and at least one memory storing instructions that (Paragraph [0017]; Fig. 8, shows apparatus structure with processor and a memory),
when executed by the one or more processors, cause the apparatus to perform : requesting, from a producer, at least one of - to provide an indication of one or more network functions or of one or more management services or of one or more radio cells fulfilling at least one of one or more criteria;- to provide management data fulfilling the at least one criterion; or - to start collection of management data fulfilling the at least one criterion (Paragraph [0066] teaches requesting and receiving indication of network function, and locality attributes typically contain information about the geographical location, capabilities, and other relevant details of the producer NFs offering the service; thus, examiner is required to show only one of the alternative claim limitations);
wherein the at least one of the criteria is fulfilled only if the respective one of the network functions (Paragraph [0064]-[0065] teaches Requesting NFs using structured locality parameters and hierarchical geographical structure (regions, domains, zones) Figure. 6 visually illustrates this structure, showing how network functions are selected based on their geographical relationships using the structured locality parameters across different data centers. Notice the claim limitation is written in alternative form),
Krishan doesn’t teach the network management services, the radio cells, and the management data are related to a geographical area.
However, in analogous art Yao teaches the network management services (Paragraphs [0038]; [0084] describes MnS producer are required to collect data “with indication of location” establishing that management services operate with geographic constraints and location-based criteria),
the radio cells (TABLE-US-00001 TABLE 6.1.1.3.2 Describes Radio cells are identified as being “affected by the coverage issue” and analyzed based on geographic coverage areas. The performance measurements are tied to specific geographic ranges and timing advance that define cell coverage areas),
and the management data are related to a geographical area (Paragraphs [0084]; [0085]; TABLE-US-00001 TABLE 6.1.1.3.2 Describes that management data is required to include “indication of location” and must incorporate “geographical information (longitude, latitude, altitude) and “terrain data”).
Krishan and Yao are considered analogous to the claimed invention as they are in the same field of wireless network function discovery and management systems.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to modify Krishan’s method of locality-based producer network function selection by incorporating the teaching of Yao method that collects, processes, and analyzes various types of network data to improve the performance and automation of wireless networks (Yao, Paragraph [0003]).
Regrading claim 2, Krishan in view of Yao, Krishan teaches wherein the instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, further cause the apparatus to perform (Paragraph [0017]; Fig. 8, shows apparatus structure with processor and a memory):
requesting, from the producer, for the geographical area , at least one of - to provide an indication of all the network functions or all the management services or radio cells fulfilling the at least one of the criteria;- to provide all the management data fulfilling the at least one of the criteria; or - to start collection of all the management data fulfilling the at least one of the criteria (Paragraph [0059] teaches that a consumer NF (the apparatus) sends a request (requesting) to NRF (the producer), where the NRF responds with a complete list of available producer NFs (indication of all network functions) along with their corresponding localities (for the geographical area), and these NFs can be sorted based on locality preferences, and Paragraph [0066] teaches that all qualifying network functions for a given geographical area are provided in response to the request. Notice the claim limitation is written in alternative form; thus, examiner is required to show only one of the alternative claim limitations).
Regrading claim 5, Krishan teaches an apparatus, comprising: one or more processors; and at least one memory storing instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the apparatus to perform (Paragraph [0017]; Fig. 8, shows apparatus structure with processor and a memory):
receiving a request to provide an indication of one or more network functions serving a geographical area (Paragraph [0066] teaches a mechanism where a request is received by a centralized function to indicate one or more network functions that serve a specific geographical area or have certain locality attributes. Consumer NFs send a discovery request to the NRF (Network Repository Function) for a particular service. The NRF responds with structured locality attribute information for producer NFs that offer the requested service. Consumer NFs then sort and select producer NFs based on their locality attributes, such as preferences related to geographical area, network latency, or other specified criteria. Notice the claim limitation is written in alternative form; thus, examiner is required to show only one of the alternative claim limitations)
or management data related to the geographical area or an indication of one or more management services serving the geographical area or an indication of one or more radio cells the coverage area of which is covered by the geographical area; for each of one or more radio cells: checking if the radio cell fulfills at least one of one or more criteria;
determining one or more network functions serving the respective radio cell if the radio cell fulfills the at least one of the one or more criteria and the request requests to provide the indication of the one or more network functions (Paragraph [0043]; [0046] disclose that the NRF 100 plays a crucial role in providing information about available network functions and their corresponding locations, enabling consumer NFs or NF proxies to choose the most suitable NF to fulfill specific service requirements in a service-based architecture environment)
or the management data or the indication of the one or more management services, respectively; determining management data or one or more management services, respectively, related to the determined one or more network functions, if the request requests to provide the management data or the indication of the one or more management services, respectively; and providing, in response to the request, the indication of the determined one or more network functions or the indication of the determined one or more management data or the indication of the determined one or more management services or, if the respective radio cell fulfills the at least one of the one or more criteria and the request requests to provide the indication of the one or more radio cells the coverage area of which is covered by the geographical area, the indication of the respective radio cell, respectively;
wherein each of the one or more criteria is only fulfilled if the respective one of the network functions (Paragraphs [0038]; [0084] describes MnS producer are required to collect data “with indication of location” establishing that management services operate with geographic constraints and location-based criteria),
However, Krishan doesn’t teach the network management services, the respective radio cell is, and the management data are related to the geographical area.
However, in analogous art Yao teaches the network management services (Paragraphs [0038]; [0084] describes MnS producer are required to collect data “with indication of location” establishing that management services operate with geographic constraints and location-based criteria),
the radio cells (TABLE-US-00001 TABLE 6.1.1.3.2 Describes Radio cells are identified as being “affected by the coverage issue” and analyzed based on geographic coverage areas. The performance measurements are tied to specific geographic ranges and timing advance that define cell coverage areas),
and the management data are related to a geographical area (Paragraphs [0084]; [0085]; TABLE-US-00001 TABLE 6.1.1.3.2 Describes that management data is required to include “indication of location” and must incorporate “geographical information (longitude, latitude, altitude) and “terrain data”).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the invention to incorporate the teachings of Krishan in view of Yao for the same reason as claim 1 above.
Regrading claim 15, Krishan in view of Yao, Krishan teaches, a non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising a set of instructions encoded thereupon which, when executed on an apparatus, causes the apparatus to carry out the method according to claim 12 (Paragraph [0027] disclose a non-transitory computer-readable medium).
Regrading claim 16, the combination of Krishan and Yao, specifically Krishan teaches a non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising a set of instructions encoded thereupon which, when executed on an apparatus, causes the apparatus to carry out the method according to claim 13 (Paragraph [0027] disclose a non-transitory computer-readable medium).
Claims 12, 13 are rejected for the same reason as set forth in claim 1 respectively.
Claim(s) 3-4, 6-10, 14 and 18-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Krishan in view of Yao in further view of Goswami et al. (US 20170150365; hereinafter Goswami).
Regarding claim 3, Krishan and Yao doesn’t teach wherein, for each of one or more radio cells, the one or more criteria comprises at least one of - the geographical area comprises at least a portion of a coverage area of the respective radio cell corresponding to a threshold value; or - an antenna of the respective radio cell is located in an area corresponding to the geographical area and a margin around the geographical area.
However, in analogous art Goswami teaches wherein, for each of one or more radio cells, the one or more criteria comprises at least one of - the geographical area comprises at least a portion of a coverage area of the respective radio cell corresponding to a threshold value; or - an antenna of the respective radio cell is located in an area corresponding to the geographical area and a margin around the geographical area (Paragraphs [0058]-[0059]; [0060] Describes identifying cell site locations within or near defined geographical areas. The “search ring” concept inherently includes a margin around the central geographical area. Describes determining overlap between geographical areas (candidate locations/search rings) and cell coverage areas, with specific threshold-based evaluations).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to modify Krishan’s method of locality-based producer network function selection by incorporating the teaching of Goswami methods for planning and deploying small cells in wireless telecommunications networks to improve coverage and capacity (Goswami, Paragraph [0017]).
Regarding claim 4, Krishan’s in view of Yao and Goswami, Goswami teaches wherein at least one of: the request comprises the threshold value; the threshold value is predefined; the request comprises the margin; the margin is predefined; or the request comprises a hint that only one of the one or more criteria is relevant (Paragraphs [0038]; [0053] describes using “predefined” values for determining geographical coverage areas and threshold. Paragraph [0056] shows the system uses predefined search ring boundaries (margins) within which to place solutions. Paragraphs [0036]-[0037] describes requests that include geographic parameters and specifications that would encompass threshold values and margins for determining cell selection criteria).
Regarding claim 6, Krishan’s in view of Yao and Goswami, Goswami teaches wherein the instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the apparatus to perform, for each of one or more radio cells (Paragraph [0059] describes a per-cell evaluation (“each cell site”) gated by criteria (overlap >= threshold; proximity) satisfying the “for each radio cell…” If it fulfills the criteria):
Yao teaches determining all the network functions serving the respective radio cell or all the management data related to the determined network functions or all the management services related to the determined network functions, respectively (Paragraph [0035] teaches collecting “management data” by describing how the system collects “performance data” and resource usage status” which are types of management data related to the identified network functions),
Goswami teaches if the respective radio cell fulfills the at least one of the one or more criteria (Paragraphs [0058]-[0059] Describes identifying cell site locations within or near defined geographical areas. The “search ring” concept inherently includes a margin around the central geographical area).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to modify Krishan’s method of locality-based producer network function selection by incorporating Yao method that collects, processes, and analyzes various types of network data and the teaching of Goswami methods for planning and deploying small cells in wireless telecommunications networks to improve coverage and capacity (Goswami, Paragraph [0017]).
Regarding claim 7, Krishan’s in view of Yao and Goswami, Krishan teaches an apparatus, comprising: one or more processors; and at least one memory storing instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the apparatus to perform (Fig. 8 showing apparatus with Processor and Memory):
Krishan doesn’t teach receiving a request to start collection of management data for a geographical area; for each of one or more radio cells:
checking whether the respective radio cell fulfills at least one of one or more criteria; determining one or more network functions serving the respective radio cell if the respective radio cell fulfills the at least one of the one or more criteria;
or triggering the determined one or more network functions to start collection of the management data for the respective radio cell;
However, in analogous art Yao teaches receiving a request to start collection of management data for a geographical area; for each of one or more radio cells (Paragraphs [0084]-[0085] describes the system’s capability to initiate collection of management data that is geographically bounded (“with indication of location”) TABLE-US-00001 TABLE 6.1.1.3.2 describes data collection requirements “per serving cell” and measurements for individual cells, showing the system processes radio cells individually (“for each”)):
Goswami teaches checking whether the respective radio cell fulfills at least one of one or more criteria ((Paragraphs [0058]-[0059]; [0060] describes checking whether radio cells fulfill specific criteria (coverage overlap, distance thresholds, percentage thresholds) to determine if they should be included in the subset);
determining one or more network functions serving the respective radio cell if the respective radio cell fulfills the at least one of the one or more criteria;
Yao teaches or triggering the determined one or more network functions to start collection of the management data for the respective radio cell (Paragraphs [0035];[0039]-[0040]; [0046] describes a system that actively initiates data collection from network functions rather than passively receiving data);
Krishan teaches wherein each of the one or more criteria is only fulfilled if the respective one of the network functions (Paragraph [0064]-[0065] teaches Requesting NFs using structured locality parameters and hierarchical geographical structure (regions, domains, zones) Figure. 6 visually illustrates this structure, showing how network functions are selected based on their geographical relationships using the structured locality parameters across different data centers. Notice the claim limitation is written in alternative form),
Krishan doesn’t teach the respective radio cell and the management data are related to the geographical area.
However, in analogous art Yao teaches the respective radio cell (TABLE-US-00001 TABLE 6.1.1.3.2 Describes Radio cells are identified as being “affected by the coverage issue” and analyzed based on geographic coverage areas. The performance measurements are tied to specific geographic ranges and timing advance that define cell coverage areas)
Yao teaches and the management data are related to the geographical area (Paragraphs [0084]; [0085]; TABLE-US-00001 TABLE 6.1.1.3.2 Describes that management data is required to include “indication of location” and must incorporate “geographical information (longitude, latitude, altitude) and “terrain data”).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to modify Krishan’s method of locality-based producer network function selection by incorporating the teaching of Goswami methods for planning and deploying small cells in wireless telecommunications networks to improve coverage and capacity and Yao method that collects, processes, and analyzes various types of network data to improve the performance and automation of wireless networks (Yao, Paragraph [0003]).
Regrading claim 8, Krishan’s in view of Yao and Goswami, specifically Krishan teaches wherein the instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the apparatus to further perform, for each of one or more radio cells: reporting the determined one or more network functions in response to the received request (Paragraph [0043] teaches reporting network functions in response to a request).
Claims 9 and 18-20 are rejected for the same reason as set forth in claim 3 respectively.
Claim 10 is rejected for the same reason as set forth in claim 4 respectively.
Claim 14 is rejected for the same reason as set forth in claim 7 respectively.
Claim 11 rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Krishan in view of Yao in further view of Schmidt et al. (US 2014/0113656; hereinafter Schmidt).
Regrading claim 11, the combination of Krishan and Yao doesn’t teach wherein the instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the apparatus to further perform, for each of the one or more radio cells: supervising if the request comprises a hint that only one of the one or more criteria is relevant; inhibiting checking for the other one of the one or more criteria if the request comprises the hint.
Schmidt, in the same endeavor teaches wherein the instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the apparatus to further perform, for each of the one or more radio cells: supervising if the request comprises a hint that only one of the one or more criteria is relevant; inhibiting checking for the other one of the one or more criteria if the request comprises the hint (Paragraph [0156] teaches A message (request) containing a hint (Predetermined delay threshold).The hint indicates only one criterion is relevant (delay threshold), and the system supervises/monitors for this specific criterion. Paragraphs [0157]; [0221] This shows, when a specific threshold/criterion is specified in the message. The system only applies that specified criterion other criteria are inhibited/not checked because the message pre-defines which specific measurements to use).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to incorporate the teachings of Krishan into the combination of Yao and Schmidt in order to enhance wireless communication network performance by improving locality-based network function selection, optimizing coverage management, and dynamically adjusting network resources based on real-time traffic demand and geographical data (Schmidt, Paragraphs [0002]-[0005]).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MEHERET WOLDEGEBREAL KIDANE whose telephone number is (571)270-3642. The examiner can normally be reached M-F8:30-5.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Ricky Ngo can be reached at 571-272-3139. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/M.W.K./Examiner, Art Unit 2464
/RICKY Q NGO/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2464