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 .
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and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114.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 02 February 2026 has been entered.
Response to Amendment
Applicant’s amendment filed 02 February 2026 amends claims 1, 5, 9, 13, and 15. Applicant’s amendment has been fully considered and entered.
Response to Arguments
Applicant argues on page 7 of the response, “Applicant respectfully submits that Jean does not teach or reasonably suggest at least the aforementioned limitations of claim 1. Jean’s RPMB authentication involves memory device access authentication rather than command buffer content authentication…”. In response, the Jean reference is a secondary reference in the claim rejections found in the Final rejection mailed 01 October 2025 (“Final”). The primary reference (Pappachan) discloses command buffer content authentication ([0059] & [0068]). Specifically, Pappachan discloses the performance of an integrity validation on metadata stored in a queue ([0059] & [0068]), which would be considered to be command buffer content authentication.
Applicant argues on pages 7-8 of the response, “Jean’s RPMB authentication involves…command buffer content authentication where both the processing device and host device independently compute and compare authentication tags over the same command buffer…Applicant respectfully submits that Jean’s technique relating to replay protected memory block command queue does not teach or reasonably suggest compute a first authentication tag using a cryptographic key associated with the host device over the command buffer, wherein the command buffer is associated with a pointer accessible by the host device, and authenticate content of the command buffer by comparing the first authentication tag with a second authentication tag computed by the host device and associated with the command buffer, wherein the command buffer includes a pointer corresponding to a list of commands and maintain a counter for use as an anti-replay mechanism, wherein the counter is maintained as an anti-replay counter that is incremented in associated with authentication of the command buffer, wherein the anti-replay counter is maintained separately from the host device as recited by claim 1.” This argument has been fully considered and is persuasive. Therefore, the previous rejections have been withdrawn.
Double Patenting
The nonstatutory double patenting rejection is based on a judicially created doctrine grounded in public policy (a policy reflected in the statute) so as to prevent the unjustified or improper timewise extension of the “right to exclude” granted by a patent and to prevent possible harassment by multiple assignees. A nonstatutory double patenting rejection is appropriate where the conflicting claims are not identical, but at least one examined application claim is not patentably distinct from the reference claim(s) because the examined application claim is either anticipated by, or would have been obvious over, the reference claim(s). See, e.g., In re Berg, 140 F.3d 1428, 46 USPQ2d 1226 (Fed. Cir. 1998); In re Goodman, 11 F.3d 1046, 29 USPQ2d 2010 (Fed. Cir. 1993); In re Longi, 759 F.2d 887, 225 USPQ 645 (Fed. Cir. 1985); In re Van Ornum, 686 F.2d 937, 214 USPQ 761 (CCPA 1982); In re Vogel, 422 F.2d 438, 164 USPQ 619 (CCPA 1970); In re Thorington, 418 F.2d 528, 163 USPQ 644 (CCPA 1969).
A timely filed terminal disclaimer in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(c) or 1.321(d) may be used to overcome an actual or provisional rejection based on nonstatutory double patenting provided the reference application or patent either is shown to be commonly owned with the examined application, or claims an invention made as a result of activities undertaken within the scope of a joint research agreement. See MPEP § 717.02 for applications subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA as explained in MPEP § 2159. See MPEP § 2146 et seq. for applications not subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA . A terminal disclaimer must be signed in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(b).
The filing of a terminal disclaimer by itself is not a complete reply to a nonstatutory double patenting (NSDP) rejection. A complete reply requires that the terminal disclaimer be accompanied by a reply requesting reconsideration of the prior Office action. Even where the NSDP rejection is provisional the reply must be complete. See MPEP § 804, subsection I.B.1. For a reply to a non-final Office action, see 37 CFR 1.111(a). For a reply to final Office action, see 37 CFR 1.113(c). A request for reconsideration while not provided for in 37 CFR 1.113(c) may be filed after final for consideration. See MPEP §§ 706.07(e) and 714.13.
The USPTO Internet website contains terminal disclaimer forms which may be used. Please visit www.uspto.gov/patent/patents-forms. The actual filing date of the application in which the form is filed determines what form (e.g., PTO/SB/25, PTO/SB/26, PTO/AIA /25, or PTO/AIA /26) should be used. A web-based eTerminal Disclaimer may be filled out completely online using web-screens. An eTerminal Disclaimer that meets all requirements is auto-processed and approved immediately upon submission. For more information about eTerminal Disclaimers, refer to www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/applying-online/eterminal-disclaimer.
Claims 1, 5, 8, 9, 13-15, 19, 20 are rejected on the ground of nonstatutory double patenting as being unpatentable over claims 1-23 of U.S. Patent No. 11,496,314. Although the claims at issue are not identical, they are not patentably distinct from each other because the subject matter claimed in the claims of the instant application is fully disclosed and covered by the corresponding claims of U.S Patent No. 11,496,314 (see table below to see a mapping for claim 1).
Pending Application
U.S. Pat. No. 11,496,314
An apparatus comprising
a hardware processing device processing circuitry to:
read a command buffer from a memory coupled to the processing circuitry, the command buffer having a first command received from a host device, the command buffer associated with an instruction executable by one or more processing elements associated with the processing circuitry, the instruction associated with parameter data; (Claim 1)
An apparatus, comprising:
…
a processing device communicatively coupled to the computer-readable memory to:
read, from a command buffer of the computer-readable memory, a first command received from a host device, the first command executable by one or more processing elements on the processing device, the first command comprising an instruction and associated parameter data including an address of a memory region referenced by the first command and comprising first command data to be operated on by execution of the first command; (Claim 1)
wherein the additional commands are linked by pointers to enable sequential execution…a first command received from a host device…the first command comprising an instruction and associated parameter data including an address of a memory region referenced by the first command and comprising first command data to be operated on by execution of the first command…(Claim 1)
compute a first authentication tag using a cryptographic key associated with the host device over the command buffer, wherein the command buffer is associated with a pointer accessible by the host device; (Claim 1)
compute a first authentication tag using a cryptographic key associated with the host device, the instruction and the first command data residing at the address of a memory region referenced by the first command; (Claim 1)
authenticate content of the command buffer by comparing the first authentication tag with a second authentication tag computed by the host device and associated with the command buffer, wherein the command buffer includes a pointer corresponding to a list of commands. (Claim 1)
and authenticate the first command by comparing the first authentication tag with a second authentication tag computed by the host device and associated with the command. (Claim 1)
the one or more command buffers comprising…one or more batch buffer store additional commands…wherein the additional commands are linked by pointers to enable sequential execution; (Claim 1)
and maintain a counter for use as an anti-replay mechanism, wherein the counter is maintained as an anti-replay counter that is incremented in associated with authentication of the command buffer, wherein the anti-replay counter is maintained separately from the host device. (Claim 1)
initialize an anti-replay counter prior to reading the first command from the command buffer. (Claim 2)
increment the anti-replay counter after the first command is executed. (Claim 4)
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to BENJAMIN E LANIER whose telephone number is (571)272-3805. The examiner can normally be reached M-Th: 6:20-4:50.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Alexander Lagor can be reached at 5712705143. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/BENJAMIN E LANIER/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2437