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 Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed December 16, 2025 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
The Applicant amends claim language to overcome previous rejections. However, the combination of Park and Xu as cited in previous Office Action still reads on the amended claim. Please see the rejections below for further details.
In addition, the Applicant argues on page 7 of the Remarks that Park’s NSSAI does not read on the claimed slice identifier that corresponds to a wireless communication service provider as recited in the amended independent claims. The Examiner respectfully disagrees.
Firstly, it is noted that one of ordinary skilled in the art would have recognized that a 5G network slice is identified by a S-NSSAI value, and it is defined within a PLMN associated with a PLMN identifier. In other words, a network slice (e.g., S-NSSAI) inherently corresponds to a wireless communication service provider, also known as a PLMN.
Secondly, the Applicant points out that Park discloses the use of Network Slice Selection Assistance Information (NSSAI), including S-NSSAI, which comprises a Slice/Service type (SST) and an optional Slice Differentiator (SD) in paragraph 0151, and the Applicant argues that these parameters are used to identify and select network slice instances based on service requirement, not to identify a wireless communication service provider. The Examiner respectfully disagrees.
As discussed above, the S-NSSAI is associated and corresponds to a wireless communication service provider (e.g., a PLMN). Thus, when a registration request message of Park is received from a UE including a slice identifier, this particular S-NSSAI corresponds to a particular wireless communication service provider or a PLMN.
Furthermore, paragraphs 015-0152 of Park also states that the a configured NSSAI may be configured in a UE by a home PLMN for each PLMN. The configured NSSAI becomes PLMN-specific, and the HPLMN indicates a PLMN to which each configured NSSAI has been applied. In a case, when the UE provide the requested NSSAI to the network a UE within a specific PLMN uses only S-NSSAIs belong to the configured NSSAI of the corresponding PLMN. In other words, a NSSAI or S-NSSAI corresponds to a wireless communication service provider or a PLMN.
Furthermore, the Applicant argues that Xu fails to remedy the deficiencies of Park. Since the Examiner did not sole rely on Xu for the argued features. Thus, this point of arguments is moot.
Lastly, the Applicant argues on page 8 of Remarks that the combination of references does not address the specific technical problem solved by the claimed features. The Examiner respectfully disagrees. As noted above, Park clearly teaches or suggests the limitation of “a slice identifier that corresponds to a wireless communication service provider” since Park expressly discloses that the NSSAI or S-NSSAI corresponds to the PLMN. Park further clearly illustrates that there are multiple AMF that are associated with the network. However, Park does not expressly that each of these AMF are associated with each of the wireless communication service provider. Even though this claim feature is not novel, the Examiner still brings Xu show that Xu expressly discloses each AMF is associated with one of the plurality of wireless communication service provider.
Based on the above discussion, it should be clear to the Applicant that the combination of Park and Xu still reads on the amended claims. Thus, previous rejections are proper and maintained.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on December 17, 2025 was filed after the mailing date of the Non-Final Office Action on September 26, 2025. The submission 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 § 103
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.
Claim(s) 1-2, 4, 7-8, and 12-13 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Park et al. (hereinafter “Park”, EP 3 544 337) as cited in IDS dated June 18, 2024 in view of Xu et al. (hereinafter “Xu”, US 2022/0061075).
Regarding claim 1, Park discloses a wireless communication system comprising:
a network node that is configured to receive, from a user equipment, a registration request message including a slice identifier that corresponds to a wireless communication service provider (i.e., receiving a registration request message including a network slice selection assistance information (NSSAI) for a slice requested by the UE as described in Abstract. The UE within a specific PLMN uses only S-NSSAI belonging to the configured NSSAI of the corresponding PLMN as described in paragraphs 0151-0155, and the NSSAI has a PLMN specific value for the slice/service type as described in paragraph 0210); and
a plurality of access and mobility management function (AMF) modules associated with a wireless communication provider (i.e. a plurality of AMF modules as shown in Fig. 9), the wireless communication service provider providing roaming services (i.e., AMF supports functions including a roaming right check as described in paragraph 0117),
wherein the network node is configured to select, based on the slice identifier included in the registration request (i.e., searching a AMF that support the NSSAI as described in paragraph 0007), one of the plurality of AMF modules that is associated with the wireless communication service provider identified by the slice identifier (i.e., selecting a serving AMF of a network node based on a slice requested by the UE and priority information of the NSSAI as described in Abstract), and
wherein the user equipment is provided with the roaming service by the wireless communication service provider associated with the selected AMF module (i.e., providing roaming services to users as described in paragraphs 0117, 0128, 0181 and 0197).
Park, however, does not expressly disclose:
a plurality of AMF modules each associated with one of a plurality of wireless communication service providers.
In a similar endeavor, Xu discloses information transmission method and apparatus, and network device. Xu also discloses:
a plurality of AMF modules each associated with one of a plurality of wireless communication service providers (i.e., a plurality of AMF, each corresponds to a different PLMN as described in paragraph 0086).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skilled in the art to modify the teachings of the cited references, and arrive at the present invention.
The motivation/suggestion for doing so would have been to provide support and different functions to each of the communication service providers.
Regarding claims 2, 8, and 13, Park and Xu disclose all limitations recited within claims as described above. Park also discloses wherein the slice identifier is assigned to the user equipment (i.e., the allowed S-NSSAI that is used by the UE as described in paragraphs 0151-0157).
Regarding claim 4, Park and Xu disclose all limitations recited within claims as described above. Park also discloses:
a session management function (SMF) module configured to interact with a decoupled data plane and manage Protocol Data Unit (PDU) sessions (i.e., SMF as shown in Fig. 7 and as described in paragraph 0126);
an user plane function (UPF) module configured to connect data from the network node (i.e., UPF is connected from RAN as shown in Fig. 7);
a policy control function (PCF) module configured to receive information regarding a packet flow from an application server and determine a policy (i.e., PCF as shown in Fig. 8); and
an unified data management (UDM) module configured to store subscriber information (i.e., UDM as shown in Fig. 8 and as described in paragraph 0214),
wherein the SMF module, the UPF module, the PCF module, and the UDM module are shared among the plurality of AMF modules (i.e., see Figs. 7-8 and its descriptions).
Regarding claim 7, Park discloses a wireless communication method comprising:
receiving, from a user equipment (UE) by a network node, a registration request message including a slice identifier that corresponds to a wireless communication service provider (i.e., receiving a registration request message including a network slice selection assistance information (NSSAI) for a slice requested by the UE as described in Abstract. The UE within a specific PLMN uses only S-NSSAI belonging to the configured NSSAI of the corresponding PLMN as described in paragraphs 0151-0155, and the NSSAI has a PLMN specific value for the slice/service type as described in paragraph 0210);
selecting, by the network node based on the slice identifier included in the registration request (i.e., searching a AMF that support the NSSAI as described in paragraph 0007), one of a plurality of access and mobility management function (AMF) modules that is associated with the wireless communication service provider identified by the slice identifier (i.e. a plurality of AMF modules as shown in Fig. 9), the plurality of AMF modules associated with the wireless communication service provider providing roaming services (i.e., AMF supports functions including a roaming right check as described in paragraph 0117); and
providing, by the wireless communication service providers associated with the selected AMF module, the roaming service to the user equipment (i.e., providing roaming services to users as described in paragraphs 0117, 0128, 0181 and 0197).
Park, however, does not expressly disclose:
a plurality of AMF modules each associated with one of a plurality of wireless communication service providers.
In a similar endeavor, Xu discloses information transmission method and apparatus, and network device. Xu also discloses:
a plurality of AMF modules each associated with one of a plurality of wireless communication service providers (i.e., a plurality of AMF, each corresponds to a different PLMN as described in paragraph 0086).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skilled in the art to modify the teachings of the cited references, and arrive at the present invention.
The motivation/suggestion for doing so would have been to provide support and different functions to each of the communication service providers.
Regarding claim 12, Park discloses a non-transitory recording medium storing a program, wherein execution of the program causes one or more computers of a wireless communication system to perform operations comprising:
receiving, from a user equipment (UE) by a network node, a registration request message including a slice identifier that corresponds to a wireless communication service provider (i.e., receiving a registration request message including a network slice selection assistance information (NSSAI) for a slice requested by the UE as described in Abstract. The UE within a specific PLMN uses only S-NSSAI belonging to the configured NSSAI of the corresponding PLMN as described in paragraphs 0151-0155, and the NSSAI has a PLMN specific value for the slice/service type as described in paragraph 0210);
selecting, by the network node based on the slice identifier included in the registration request (i.e., searching a AMF that support the NSSAI as described in paragraph 0007), one of a plurality of access and mobility management function (AMF) modules that is associated with the wireless communication service provider is identified by (i.e. a plurality of AMF modules as shown in Fig. 9) the slice identifier (i.e., based on the requested NSSAI as described in Abstract), the AMF module associated with the wireless communication service providers providing roaming services (i.e., AMF supports functions including a roaming right check as described in paragraph 0117); and
providing, by the wireless communication service provider associated with the selected AMF module, the roaming service the user equipment (i.e., providing roaming services to users as described in paragraphs 0117, 0128, 0181 and 0197).
Park, however, does not expressly disclose:
a plurality of AMF modules each associated with one of a plurality of wireless communication service providers.
In a similar endeavor, Xu discloses information transmission method and apparatus, and network device. Xu also discloses:
a plurality of AMF modules each associated with one of a plurality of wireless communication service providers (i.e., a plurality of AMF, each corresponds to a different PLMN as described in paragraph 0086).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skilled in the art to modify the teachings of the cited references, and arrive at the present invention.
The motivation/suggestion for doing so would have been to provide support and different functions to each of the communication service providers.
Claim(s) 5, 10 and 15 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Park in view of Xu and further in view of Song et al. (hereinafter “Song”, US 2025/0294436).
Regarding claims 5, 10, and 15, Park and Xu disclose all limitations recited within claims as described above. Park also discloses:
wherein the plurality of AMF modules are configured to, based on being selected by the network node, transmit a registration accept message to the user equipment (i.e., the AMF accepts the registration of the UE by transmitting a Registration Accept to the UE as described in paragraph 0232).
Park and Xu, however, does not expressly disclose wherein the registration accept message includes information regarding various features that are supported.
In a similar endeavor, Song discloses methods and apparatuses for facilitating network slice selection. Song also discloses wherein the registration accept message includes information regarding various features that are supported (i.e., the registration accept indicating that allowed NSSAI is A, B, C as described in paragraph 0093).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skilled in the art to modify the teachings of the cited references, and arrive at the present invention.
The motivation/suggestion for doing so would have been to enable the UE to get the optimal service.
Claim(s) 6 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Park in view of Xu and further in view of Godin et al. (hereinafter “Godin”, US 2024/0015599).
Regarding claim 6, Park and Xu disclose all limitations recited within claims as described above, but do not expressly disclose features of these claims.
In a similar endeavor, Godin discloses RAN congestion management and service continuity with user consent option. Godin also discloses:
wherein the plurality of AMF modules are configured to, based on being selected by the network node, transmit an initial context setup request message to the network node, the initial context setup request message indicating a mobility trigger for improving voice performance being supported (i.e., AMF indicate information to the RAN as part of an initial context setup request for a giving UE or ding connected node mobility in a case of a change of RAN node as described in paragraph 0035).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skilled in the art to modify the teachings of the cited references, and arrive at the present invention.
The motivation/suggestion for doing so would have been to provide service to the user equipment seamlessly.
Claim(s) 11, and 16 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Park in view of Xu and further in view of Kim et al. (hereinafter “Kim”, US 2023/0033793).
Regarding claims 11, and 16, Park and Xu disclose all limitations recited within claims as described above, but do not expressly disclose features of these claims.
In a similar endeavor, Kim discloses method and apparatus for providing voice service to user equipment in hybrid mobile communication system. Kim also discloses:
transmitting, by the one of the plurality of AMF modules, an initial context setup request message to the network node (i.e., transmitting by AMF an initial context setup request message to NG-RAN 103 as described in paragraph 0104),
wherein the initial context setup request message indicates an Evolved Packet System Fallback (EPSFB) being supported (i.e., indicator indicating whether the UE and/or the network support EPS fallback as described in paragraph 0104).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skilled in the art to modify the teachings of the cited references, and arrive at the present invention.
The motivation/suggestion for doing so would have been to enable the user equipment to use wireless communication seamlessly between different technologies.
Conclusion
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to WAYNE CAI whose telephone number is (571)272-7798. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Thursday, 7:00 AM-5:00 PM.
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/Wayne H Cai/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2644