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 .
This Office Action is in response to Application filed on April 13, 2023 in which claims 4-15, 18, 19, and 34-39 are presented for examination.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on April 13, 2023 is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 4-15, 18, 19, and 34-39 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by RINNE et al. US 2017/0311243 A1.
Regarding claim 4, RINNE et al. disclose “a method performed by a network node for a cellular communications system” (See Figures 1a, 1b and 2), the method comprising: “receiving a Radio Resource Control, RRC, message from a User Equipment, UE” (See Paragraphs 5 and 34; figures 1a, 1b ref. 140) Abstract describing method includes receiving at the user equipment a query response message in response to the radio resource control query request message), comprising “an unknown cause value” (See paragraphs 2, 33 and 34); and “sending a message to a core network node” (Abstract describing sending from a user equipment a radio resource control query request message to a network entity) “the message comprising an indication that the unknown cause value is included in the RRC message received from the UE” (Paragraph 34, 42 describing when the query request message is an RRC query request message, the query response message may also include the random UE-ID received by the network entity in step 130).
As per claims 18, 19, 34 and 35, the same reasoning applies, mutatis mutandis, to the subject-matter of the corresponding independent claims 18, 19, 34 and 35, which are therefore rejected as set forth in paragraph above.
As per claims 5-15, 19, and 36-39, the additional features of the dependent claims 5-15, 19, and 36-39 are disclosed by RINNE et al. (See Figures 1a-5 and corresponding text).
As per claim 5, RINNE et al. disclose “wherein the message sent to the core network node is a NGAP message” as NG application protocol (See Paragraph 0033 describing a network entity that detects the preambles sent through the PRACH. The network entity may be a network node or a base station, such as, an evolved NodeB (eNB). The network entity can then send a second message (Msg2) known as a random access response (RAR) to the UE as a media access control protocol data unit (MAC PDU).
As per claim 6, RINNE et al. disclose “wherein the RRC message is an RRC message for establishment of an RRC connection” (Paragraph 0035 describing query message is being sent for the UE before the RRC connection is established. For example, a pre-association message can be a message sent before any RRC connection is established, or when a device is in an RRC unconnected state).
As per claim 7, RINNE et al. disclose “wherein the unknown cause value is comprised in an EstablishmentCause Information Element, IE, comprised in the RRC message for establishment of the RRC connection” (Paragraph 0036 describing the exchange of radio resource control query request message and the radio resource control query response message may mean that UE can be pre-associated to a network element, or the UE can be in a pre-association state, or that the UE can be in light RRC connection state or a similar state).
As per claim 8, RINNE et al. disclose “wherein the unknown cause value is comprised in an EstablishmentCause-NB Information Element, IE, comprised in the RRC message for establishment of the RRC connection” (Paragraphs 0045-0048).
As per claim 9, RINNE et al. disclose “wherein the RRC message is an RRC message for resuming an RRC connection” (Paragraph 0045).
As per claim 10, RINNE et al. disclose “wherein the unknown cause value is comprised in a ResumeCause Information Element, IE, comprised in the RRC message for resuming the RRC connection” (Paragraphs 0045-0048).
As per claim 11, RINNE et al. disclose “wherein the message sent to the core network node is a NGAP message” (See Paragraph 0033 describing a network entity that detects the preambles sent through the PRACH. The network entity may be a network node or a base station, such as, an evolved NodeB (eNB). The network entity can then send a second message (Msg2) known as a random access response (RAR) to the UE as a media access control protocol data unit (MAC PDU), and “the indication that the unknown cause value is included in the RRC message received from the UE is an existing notAvailable code point in a NGAP RRC Establishment Cause IE comprised in the NGAP message” (Paragraphs 0045-0048).
As per claim 12, RINNE et al. disclose “wherein the message sent to the core network node is a NGAP message” (See Paragraph 0033 describing a network entity that detects the preambles sent through the PRACH. The network entity may be a network node or a base station, such as, an evolved NodeB (eNB). The network entity can then send a second message (Msg2) known as a random access response (RAR) to the UE as a media access control protocol data unit (MAC PDU), and the indication that the unknown cause value is included in the RRC message received from the UE (212) is a new code point in a NGAP RRC Establishment Cause IE comprised in the NGAP message” (Paragraphs 0045-0048).
As per claim 13, RINNE et al. disclose “wherein the message sent to the core network node is a NGAP message, and the NGAP message is an NGAP Initial UE Message” (See Paragraph 0033).
As per claim 14, RINNE et al. disclose “wherein the network node is a Next Generation RAN, NG-RAN, node” As per claim 13, RINNE et al. disclose “wherein the message sent to the core network node is a NGAP message, and the NGAP message is an NGAP Initial UE Message” (See Paragraph 0033).
As per claim 15, RINNE et al. disclose “wherein the core network node is an Access and Mobility Management Function, AMF” (Paragraphs 0028, 0029, 0032, 0033, 0038, 0045).
As per claim 36, RINNE et al. disclose “wherein the establishment cause value included in the RRC message received from the UE does not have an explicitly defined mapping to a cause value for the message to be sent to the core network node” (Figure 1a through Figure 5 and corresponding text; Paragraphs 0045-0048).
As per claim 37, RINNE et al. disclose “wherein the indication is an existing codepoint” ” (Figure 1a through Figure 5 and corresponding text; Paragraphs 0045-0048).
As per claim 38, RINNE et al. disclose “wherein the existing codepoint is a "not available" value” (Figure 1a through Figure 5 and corresponding text; Paragraphs 0045-0048).
As per claim 39, RINNE et al. disclose “wherein the indication is a new codepoint for the cause value included in the message sent to the core network node” (Figure 1a through Figure 5 and corresponding text; Paragraphs 0045-0048).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to FRANTZ COBY whose telephone number is (571)272-4017. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Thursday 7AM-5:30PM.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Tonia Dollinger can be reached at (571) 272-4170. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/FRANTZ COBY/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2459
September 22, 2026
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