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 is an Office action based on RCE filed 01/26/2026.
Claims 1-30 are pending and have been examined.
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 allowance or after an Office action under Ex Parte Quayle, 25 USPQ 74, 453 O.G. 213 (Comm'r Pat. 1935). 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, prosecution in this application has been reopened pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 01/26/2026 has been entered.
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of papers submitted under 35 U.S.C. 119(a)-(d), which
papers have been placed of record in the file.
Drawings
The drawings were received on 02/21/2023. These drawings are reviewed and accepted by the Examiner.
Information Disclosure Statement
The Information Disclosure Statement filed 01/26/2026 have been considered. An initialed copy of Form 1449 is enclosed herewith.
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 1-4, 9-16, and 21-30 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over PGPub 2015/0079985 to Vuchula et al. (“Vuchula”) in view of US PGPub 2020/0383152 to Walia et al. (“Walia”).
Regarding claim 1, Vuchula discloses a method for wireless communication at a user equipment (UE), comprising:
performing, at a first subscription of the UE
([0057] states that “ … The service requests identify one or more frequency bands supported by the respective SIMs 204a, 204b to perform a service signal search”),
a first scan procedure ([0070] states that “FIG. 3B illustrates a sequence of service acquisition scans 350 of an RF chain in a wireless device (e.g., 110)” )
for a first set of radio frequency bands according to a default scanning order ([0070] states that “… The first acquisition database scan 372 may search channels consecutively using a first set of channels identified in a first technology list from an acquisition database until either a renewed service connection is acquired or the first technology list is exhausted.”);
storing an indication of a subset of radio frequency bands of the first set of radio frequency bands for the first scan procedure ([0071] In response to determining that the first technology list was exhausted … . The determining that the first technology list was exhausted is interpreted as an indication of a subset of radio frequency bands of the first set of radio frequency bands for the first scan procedure it is the list of radio frequency bands scanned on first list); and
performing a second scan procedure for a second set of radio frequency bands according to a modified scanning order based at least in part on the stored indication of the subset of radio frequency bands ([0071] states that “In response to determining that the first technology list was exhausted, a second acquisition database scan 374 may be performed to acquire a renewed service connection. The second acquisition database scan 374 may search channels consecutively using a second set of channels identified in a second technology list from the acquisition database until either a renewed service connection is acquired or the second technology list is exhausted..” The search channels consecutively using a second set of channels identified in a second technology list from the acquisition database until either a renewed service connection is acquired or the second technology list is exhausted is interpreted as according to a modified scanning order based at least in part on the stored indication of the subset of radio frequency bands);
performing, [at a second subscription of the UE], a second scan procedure for a second set of radio frequency bands according to a modified scanning order based at least in part on the stored indication of the subset of radio frequency bands.
In response to determining that the second technology list was exhausted, a third acquisition database scan 376 may be performed to acquire a renewed service connection. The third acquisition database scan 376 may search consecutively using third channels identified in a third technology list from the acquisition database until either a renewed service connection is acquired or the third technology list is exhausted. Vuchula, ¶ 71
Vuchula does not expressly teach performing, at a second subscription of the UE, a second scan procedure according to the claim language.
However, in the analogous prior art Walia teaches to perform a second scan procedure at a second subscription of the UE.
Apparatus and methods to support access to services of multiple wireless networks by a single-radio, multiple subscriber identity module (SIM)/electronic SIM (eSIM) wireless device are disclosed. To send or receive voice communications for multiple SIMs/eSIMs, when an active voice connection for a first SIM/eSIM uses wireless circuitry to connect to a first cellular wireless network via a first radio access network, the single-radio, multi-SIM/eSIM wireless device uses alternative data transports, such as via a wireless local area network (WLAN) or by tunneling through the first radio access network of the first cellular wireless network to connect to services of additional cellular wireless networks associated with the multiple SIMs/eSIMs. Walia, Abstract.
When the single-radio, multi-SIM/eSIM wireless device establishes a mobile-originated (MO) or mobile-terminated (MT) voice connection using a non-data-preferred SIM/eSIM, an existing IMS registration for the data preferred SIM/eSIM, as well as for all other non-data-preferred SIMs/eSIMs, can be changed to use a data transport connection (if not already using one) to reach their respective associated core wireless networks. The data transport connection can be via a WLAN when available. When a WLAN data connection is not available (or cannot be established), the single-radio, multi-SIM/eSIM wireless device, responsive to establishing the MO/MT voice connection using the non-data-preferred SIM/eSIM, can establish a temporary data connection using the non-data-preferred SIM/eSIM and can move the IMS registrations for the data-preferred SIM/eSIM (and for other non-data-preferred SIMs/eSIMs) to tunnel to their respective cellular wireless networks via the temporary IP cellular data connection. When the single-radio wireless device terminates the MO/MT voice connection, the single-radio wireless device can move the IMS registrations for the data-preferred SIM/eSIM and for each of the other non-data-preferred SIMs/eSIMs to traverse the radio access networks of their associated cellular wireless networks. Walia, ¶ 24
Therefore, at the time the invention was made, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art to combine the teachings of Walia with Vuchula in order to support a “multiple subscriber identity module (SIM)/electronic SIM (eSIM) wireless device” capable of tunneling through a radio access network to connect to additional services (Walia, Abstract). In the event that a given SIM connection is not available (i.e., Vuchula's “technology list is exhausted”), it would have been obvious to perform a similar scan for a second subscription (e.g., a second SIM connection) in order to “connect to services of additional cellular wireless networks” (Walia, Abstract).
Accordingly, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made to combine the teachings of Walia with Vuchula in order to arrive at the invention specified in claim 1.
Regarding claim 2, in the obvious combination, Vuchula discloses the method of claim 1, wherein performing the second scan procedure comprises: determining a relevance of the stored indication of the subset of radio frequency bands of the first set of radio frequency bands ([0070] FIG. 3B: , the time difference between the first acquisition scan 372 and the second acquisition database scan 374 in Fig. 3B (That is, there is relevance regarding the first scan and second scan), wherein the scans are coordinated (coordinated power save, as in [0076]) to wait for a complete scan of the first list so as to start with scanning second scan list); and determining the modified scanning order based at least in part on the relevance of the stored indication ([0076] FIG. 4B illustrates a sequence of service acquisition scans 400b illustrating coordinated power save mode operations … . By coordinating the timing of the service acquisition scans 400b between the two subscriptions Sub1, Sub2, the wireless device may avoid collisions in out-of-service recovery attempts. In this way, the out-of-service recovery scans may be scheduled to occur in alternating intervals, so each subscription Sub1, Sub2 takes turns. Thus, this method takes advantage of the deep sleep periods between scans for each subscription.).
Regarding claim 3, in the obvious combination, Vuchula discloses the method of claim 2, wherein determining the relevance of the stored indication of the subset of radio frequency bands of the first set of radio frequency bands comprises: identifying a time difference between the first scan procedure and the second scan procedure ([0070] FIG. 3B: , the time difference between the first acquisition scan 372 and the second acquisition database scan 374 in Fig. 3B; ([0076] FIG. 4B illustrates a sequence of service acquisition scans 400b illustrating coordinated power save mode operations … . By coordinating the timing of the service acquisition scans 400b between the two subscriptions Sub1, Sub2, the wireless device may avoid collisions in out-of-service recovery attempts. In this way, the out-of-service recovery scans may be scheduled to occur in alternating intervals, so each subscription Sub1, Sub2 takes turns.), a location of the first scan procedure and a location of the second scan procedure, or a combination thereof ([0070] FIG. 3B illustrates a sequence of service acquisition scans 350 of an RF chain in a wireless device (e.g., 110) attempting to recover from an out-of-service state in accordance with various embodiments. With reference to FIGS. 1-3B, the sequence of service acquisition scans 350 corresponds to a timeline 355 of activity of the RF chain. The bars represent periods of service scan activity on the RF chain.).
Regarding claim 4, in the obvious combination, Vuchula discloses the method of claim 1, wherein performing the second scan procedure comprises: determining that the second scan procedure starts within a [first time threshold from an end of the] first scan procedure ([0037] “During the wake-up period, the wireless device applies search techniques designed to locate service signals efficiently with reduced power consumption. The search techniques may permit the wireless device to recover service quickly while preserving battery life. For example, the wireless device may access an acquisition database in order to first search for a service signal on channels from which service was recently acquired. This type of search limited to channels identified in the acquisition database is referred to herein as an ‘acquisition database scan.’” Thus, ‘For example, the wireless device may access an acquisition database in order to first search for a service signal on channels from which service was recently acquired.’ This is interpreted as within a time threshold: thus, “the wireless device applies search techniques designed to locate service signals efficiently with reduced power consumption.”); and skipping the subset of radio frequency bands of the first set of radio frequency bands based at least in part on the indication of the subset of radio frequency bands ([0037] “For example, a first acquisition database scan may include first searches for first channels identified in a first technology list from the acquisition database until either a renewed service connection is acquired or the first technology list is exhausted. Similarly, a second acquisition database scan may include second searches for second channels identified in a second technology list from the acquisition database until either a renewed service connection is acquired or the second technology list is exhausted.” Thus, the second search does not search same bands of the first search, which reads on skipping subset of first set of frequencies).
Regarding claim 9, in the obvious combination, Vuchula discloses the method of claim 1, further comprising: activating a first timer and performing the second scan procedure based at least in part on activating the first timer ([0081] “Upon entering deep sleep, the TA-Start timer may be started if the current time, plus the TA-Start timer value, plus the TA-Max is less than the next deep sleep wakeup time. Upon the expiration of the TA-Start timer, an acquisition database scan 320 may be triggered for the corresponding technology (i.e., the RAT). When the attempt to acquire service using the acquisition database scan is unsuccessful, the TA-Start timer may be started if the current time plus the value on the TA-Start timer plus Value TA-Max is less than the next deep sleep wakeup time.”.
Regarding claim 10, in the obvious combination, Vuchula discloses the method of claim 1, wherein the subset of radio frequency bands of the first set of radio frequency bands corresponds radio frequency bands scanned during the first scan procedure ([0037] “. For example, a first acquisition database scan may include first searches for first channels identified in a first technology list from the acquisition database until either a renewed service connection is acquired or the first technology list is exhausted.”).
Regarding claim 11, in the obvious combination, Vuchula discloses the method of claim 1, further comprising: camping on a first radio frequency of the first set of radio frequency bands based at least in part on the first scan procedure ([0083] “In response to determining that any service is acquired because of the limited service scan (i.e., determination block 535="Yes"), the wireless device may enter the idle/connected mode in block 540.”); and camping on the first radio frequency of the second set of radio frequency bands based at least in part on the second scan procedure ([0008] “Also, a second acquisition database scan may be performed to acquire a second renewed service connection for a second subscription in response to determining a second current service connection is not available for the second subscription. A determination may be made regarding whether the second renewed service connection is acquired from the second acquisition database scan”).
Regarding claim 12, in the obvious combination, Vuchula discloses the method of claim 1, further comprising: determining that the second scan procedure has completed based at least in part on satisfying a time threshold ([0012] “a determination may be made regarding whether the renewed service connection was acquired from the first deep sleep full service scan. The power save mode time limit may thus be reset in response to determining that the renewed service connection is not acquired from the first deep sleep full service scan.” ; and removing the indication of the subset of radio frequency bands of the first set of radio frequency bands based at least in part on determining that the second scan procedure has completed ([0012] “ the acquisition database scan may be repeated until at least one of the reset power save mode time limit has expired and the renewed service connection is acquired. Further, a second deep sleep full service scan may be performed to acquire the renewed service connection in response to determining that the renewed service connection was no acquired from at least one acquisition database scan and the reset power save mode time limit has expired.”).
Claim 13 contains subject matter similar to claim 1, and thus, is rejected under similar rationale. (Vuchula, [0004] “wireless device,” Figure 1, 120, 110).
Claim 14 contains subject matter similar to claim 2, and thus, is rejected under similar rationale.
Claim 15 contains subject matter similar to claim 3, and thus, is rejected under similar rationale.
Claim 16 contains subject matter similar to claim 4, and thus, is rejected under similar rationale.
Claim 21 contains subject matter similar to claim 9, and thus, is rejected under similar rationale.
Claim 22 contains subject matter similar to claim 10, and thus, is rejected under similar rationale.
Claim 23 contains subject matter similar to claim 11, and thus, is rejected under similar rationale.
Claim 24 contains subject matter similar to claim 12, and thus, is rejected under similar rationale.
Claim 25 contains subject matter similar to claim 1, and thus, is rejected under similar rationale.
Claim 26 contains subject matter similar to claim 2, and thus, is rejected under similar rationale.
Claim 27 contains subject matter similar to claim 3, and thus, is rejected under similar rationale.
Claim 28 contains subject matter similar to claim 1, and thus, is rejected under similar rationale (Vuchula, [0050] The wireless device 110 also includes at least one controller, such as a general processor 206 … The memory 214 may be a non-transitory tangible computer readable storage medium that stores processor-executable instructions).
Claim 29 contains subject matter similar to claim 2, and thus, is rejected under similar rationale.
Claim 30 contains subject matter similar to claim 3, and thus, is rejected under similar rationale.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 5-8 and 17-20 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
Claims 5-8 and 17-20 would be allowable because the closest prior art Vuchula (US 20150079985) discloses wherein determining that the second scan procedure starts within a second time threshold from an end of the first scan procedure; and determining the modified scanning order by prioritizing scanning of radio frequency bands of the second set of radio frequency bands that are different than the subset of radio frequency bands of the first set of radio frequency bands based at least in part on the indication of the subset of radio frequency bands (Claim 5), and determine that the second scan procedure starts within a second time threshold from an end of the first scan procedure; and determine the modified scanning order by prioritizing scanning of radio frequency bands of the second set of radio frequency bands that are different than the subset of radio frequency bands of the first set of radio frequency bands based at least in part on the indication of the subset of radio frequency bands (Claim 17), as defined in the specification, in combination with all other limitations in the claim(s) as defined by applicant. Claims 6-8 and 18-20 depend from claims 1 and 13, respectively, and are allowable for at least the same reasons.
Any comments considered necessary by applicant must be submitted no later than the payment of the issue fee and, to avoid processing delays, should preferably accompany the issue fee. Such submissions should be clearly labeled “Comments on Statement of Reasons for Allowance.”
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
US 9942833 to Bhasin et al: The mobile terminal device is configured to detect network access points on one or more carrier channels using a first radio scan and a second radio scan by obtaining one or more scan results of the first radio scan, each of the scan results of the first radio scan corresponding to a carrier channel targeted for radio scan by the first radio scan.
US 20150296520 to Batchu et al: improving acquisition of services in multi-SIM mobile devices by using modified priorities for radio access technologies (RATs) in partial out-of-service conditions include determining when a first radio access technology (RAT) within a plurality of RATs begins to use a shared resource within the multi-SIM mobile device that is configured to be utilized by the plurality of RATs, determining whether a second RAT within the plurality of RATs was in-service or out of service at the time when the first RAT began using the shared resource.
US 20140335873 to Yu et al: A wireless communication device begins an acquisition. A scan of absolute radio frequency channel numbers for supported bands is performed using a wideband receiver. The absolute radio frequency channel numbers that include a frequency correction channel are identified.
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/JULIO R PEREZ/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2644