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 .
DETAILED ACTION
This office action is in response to the application filed on 01/29/2024.
Claims 1-20 are currently pending.
Claims 1-12, 15-18 and 20 are rejected.
Claims 13-14 and 19 are objected to.
Claims 1, 7 and 15 are independent claims.
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Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
6. 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 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.
7. 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 of this title, 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.
8. The factual inquiries set forth in Graham v. John Deere Co., 383 U.S. 1, 148 USPQ 459 (1966), that are applied for establishing a background for determining obviousness under pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 103(a) 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.
9. Claims 1, 3-7, 9-12, 15, 17-18 and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yang Xin et al. (US 2020/0015294 A1), hereinafter Xin, in view of Weihua Qiao et al. (US 2019/0109823 A1), hereinafter Qiao.
For claim 1, Xin teaches a method performed by a one or more computing devices configured in a wireless communications network, the method comprising:
receiving, at access management function from a base station, a packet data communications session request comprising an indication of a user device and an indication of a destination (Xin teaches the AMF receives from the UE via the base station a PDU session establishment request including UE identity and requested data network information (destination). See Figs. 1, 6 and paragraph 136. See also Fig. 2 step 201 and paragraphs 52-57.);
determining, at the access management function, a virtual network associated with the destination (Xin teaches the AMF, based on subscription and session information, selects appropriate network resources (e.g., different networks associated with APN/DNN) for the requested service. See Fig. 2 step 202 and paragraphs 58-73, 100-134.);
determining, at the access management function, based on session management function data stored at the access management function, an active packet data communications session associated with the user device; determining, at the access management function, based on the session management function data, a session management function associated with the active packet data communications session associated with the user device (Xin teaches the AMF stores subscriber and PDU-session-related data, including mappings between UEs, existing PDU sessions, and corresponding SMFs, and consults this stored data when managing PDU session establishment and modification. See Fig. 6 and paragraphs 137-157.); and
initiating, at the access management function and interoperating with the session management function, based at least in part on determining that the session management function associated with the active packet data communications session is configured to establish the packet data communications sessions with the virtual network, establishment of a packet data communications session in the wireless communications network between the user device and the destination (Xin, Fig. 6 and paragraphs 137-157.)
Qiao further teaches determining, at the access management function, that the session management function associated with the active packet data communications session is configured to establish packet data communications sessions with the virtual network (Qiao teaches that an SMF is responsible for specific types of PDU sessions (e.g., Ethernet PDU sessions), indicating that an SMF’s ability to establish sessions depends on its supported network or service type. See also Fig. 10 and paragraph 84-99.).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the method taught in Xin with determining, at the access management function, that the session management function associated with the active packet data communications session is configured to establish packet data communications sessions with the virtual network taught in Qiao to improve network performance [Qiao: paragraph 107].
For claim 3, Xin and Qiao further teach the method of claim 1, further comprising storing and associating, in the session management function data, data indicating the user device, the packet data communications session, and the session management function (Xin, Fig. 6 and paragraphs 58-64.).
For claim 4, Xin and Qiao further teach the method of claim 1, wherein determining the virtual network associated with the destination comprises determining a data network name for the virtual network (Xin, Fig. 2 and paragraphs 52-57.).
For claim 5, Xin and Qiao further teach the method of claim 1, wherein determining the virtual network associated with the destination comprises determining a slice identifier for the virtual network (Xin, Fig. 2 and summary. See also Qiao, Fig. 10 and paragraph 84-99.).
For claim 6, Xin and Qiao further teach the method of claim 1, wherein initiating establishment of the packet data communications session comprises determining a user plane function for exchanging user data between the user device and the virtual network (Xin, Fig. 6 and paragraph 40.).
For claim 7, Xin teaches a network computing device configured at a wireless communications network (Xin, Fig. 10 item AMF), the network computing device comprising:
one or more processors (Xin, Fig. 10 item 1002);
one or more transceivers (Xin, Fig. 10 items 1003, 1004); and
non-transitory computer-readable media storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform operations comprising:
receiving, from a base station, a packet data communications session request comprising an indication of a user device and an indication of a destination (Xin teaches the AMF receives from the UE via the base station a PDU session establishment request including UE identity and requested data network information (destination). See Figs. 1, 6 and paragraph 136. See also Fig. 2 step 201 and paragraphs 52-57.);
determining a virtual network associated with the destination (Xin teaches the AMF, based on subscription and session information, selects appropriate network resources (e.g., different networks associated with APN/DNN) for the requested service. See Fig. 2 step 202 and paragraphs 58-73, 100-134.);
determining, based on session management function data stored at the access management function, an active packet data communications session associated with the user device; determining, based on the session management function data, a session management function associated with the active packet data communications session associated with the user device (Xin teaches the AMF stores subscriber and PDU-session-related data, including mappings between UEs, existing PDU sessions, and corresponding SMFs, and consults this stored data when managing PDU session establishment and modification. See Fig. 6 and paragraphs 137-157.); and
initiating, with the session management function, based at least in part on determining that the session management function associated with the active packet data communications session is configured to establish the packet data communications sessions with the virtual network, establishment of a packet data communications session in the wireless communications network between the user device and the destination (Xin, Fig. 6 and paragraphs 137-157.)
Qiao further teaches determining that the session management function associated with the active packet data communications session is configured to establish packet data communications sessions with the virtual network (Qiao teaches that an SMF is responsible for specific types of PDU sessions (e.g., Ethernet PDU sessions), indicating that an SMF’s ability to establish sessions depends on its supported network or service type. See also Fig. 10 and paragraph 84-99.).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the method taught in Xin with determining, at the access management function, that the session management function associated with the active packet data communications session is configured to establish packet data communications sessions with the virtual network taught in Qiao to improve network performance [Qiao: paragraph 107].
For claim 9, Xin and Qiao further teach the network computing device of claim 7, wherein the operations further comprise storing and associating, in the session management function data, data indicating the user device, the packet data communications session, and the session management function (Xin, Fig. 6 and paragraphs 58-64.).
For claim 10, Xin and Qiao further teach the network computing device of claim 7, wherein determining the virtual network associated with the destination comprises determining a data network name for the virtual network (Xin, Fig. 2 and paragraphs 52-57.).
For claim 11, Xin and Qiao further teach the network computing device of claim 7, wherein determining the virtual network associated with the destination comprises determining a slice identifier for the virtual network (Xin, Fig. 2 and summary. See also Qiao, Fig. 10 and paragraph 84-99.).
For claim 12, Xin and Qiao further teach the network computing device of claim 7, wherein initiating establishment of the packet data communications session comprises determining a user plane function for exchanging user data between the user device and the virtual network (Xin, Fig. 6 and paragraph 40.).
For claim 15, Xin teaches a non-transitory computer-readable media (Xin, Fig. 13 item 1302) storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by one or more processors (Xin, Fig. 13 item 1301), cause the one or more processors to perform operations comprising:
receiving, at access management function from a base station, a packet data communications session request comprising an indication of a user device and an indication of a destination (Xin teaches the AMF receives from the UE via the base station a PDU session establishment request including UE identity and requested data network information (destination). See Figs. 1, 6 and paragraph 136. See also Fig. 2 step 201 and paragraphs 52-57.);
determining, at the access management function, a virtual network associated with the destination (Xin teaches the AMF, based on subscription and session information, selects appropriate network resources (e.g., different networks associated with APN/DNN) for the requested service. See Fig. 2 step 202 and paragraphs 58-73, 100-134.);
determining, at the access management function, based on session management function data stored at the access management function, an active packet data communications session associated with the user device; determining, at the access management function, based on the session management function data, a session management function associated with the active packet data communications session associated with the user device (Xin teaches the AMF stores subscriber and PDU-session-related data, including mappings between UEs, existing PDU sessions, and corresponding SMFs, and consults this stored data when managing PDU session establishment and modification. See Fig. 6 and paragraphs 137-157.); and
initiating, at the access management function and interoperating with the session management function, based at least in part on determining that the session management function associated with the active packet data communications session is configured to establish the packet data communications sessions with the virtual network, establishment of a packet data communications session in the wireless communications network between the user device and the destination (Xin, Fig. 6 and paragraphs 137-157.)
Qiao further teaches determining, at the access management function, that the session management function associated with the active packet data communications session is configured to establish packet data communications sessions with the virtual network (Qiao teaches that an SMF is responsible for specific types of PDU sessions (e.g., Ethernet PDU sessions), indicating that an SMF’s ability to establish sessions depends on its supported network or service type. See also Fig. 10 and paragraph 84-99.).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the method taught in Xin with determining, at the access management function, that the session management function associated with the active packet data communications session is configured to establish packet data communications sessions with the virtual network taught in Qiao to improve network performance [Qiao: paragraph 107].
For claim 17, Xin and Qiao further teach the non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 15, wherein the operations further comprise storing and associating, in the session management function data, data indicating the user device, the packet data communications session, and the session management function (Xin, Fig. 6 and paragraphs 58-64.).
For claim 18, Xin and Qiao further teach the non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 15, wherein initiating establishment of the packet data communications session comprises determining a user plane function for exchanging user data between the user device and the virtual network (Xin, Fig. 6 and paragraph 40.).
For claim 20, Xin and Qiao further teach the non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 15, wherein determining the virtual network associated with the destination comprises determining at least one of a data network name for the virtual network or a slice identifier for the virtual network (Xin, Fig. 2 and summary. See also Qiao, Fig. 10 and paragraph 84-99.).
10. Claims 2, 8 and 16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yang Xin et al. (US 2020/0015294 A1), hereinafter Xin, in view of Weihua Qiao et al. (US 2019/0109823 A1), hereinafter Qiao and Mahesh Satyanarayana et al. (US 2024/0040472 A1), hereinafter Satyanarayana.
For claim 2, Xin and Qiao teach all the limitations of parent claim 2. Xin and Qiao do not explicitly teach a second virtual network that is distinct from the virtual network associated with the destination.
However, Satyanarayana explicitly teaches a second virtual network that is distinct from the virtual network associated with the destination (Satyanarayana, Fig. 6, and paragraphs 24-30.).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the method taught in Xin and Qiao with a second virtual network that is distinct from the virtual network associated with the destination taught in Satyanarayana to have the active packet data communications session is associated with a second virtual network that is distinct from the virtual network associated with the destination in order to improve the performance and help in reducing costs associated with the public cloud [Satyanarayana: paragraph 88].
For claim 8, Xin and Qiao teach all the limitations of parent claim 7. Xin and Qiao do not explicitly teach a second virtual network that is distinct from the virtual network associated with the destination.
However, Satyanarayana explicitly teaches a second virtual network that is distinct from the virtual network associated with the destination (Satyanarayana, Fig. 6, and paragraphs 24-30.).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the method taught in Xin and Qiao with a second virtual network that is distinct from the virtual network associated with the destination taught in Satyanarayana to have the active packet data communications session is associated with a second virtual network that is distinct from the virtual network associated with the destination in order to improve the performance and help in reducing costs associated with the public cloud [Satyanarayana: paragraph 88].
For claim 16, Xin and Qiao teach all the limitations of parent claim 15. Xin and Qiao do not explicitly teach a second virtual network that is distinct from the virtual network associated with the destination.
However, Satyanarayana explicitly teaches a second virtual network that is distinct from the virtual network associated with the destination (Satyanarayana, Fig. 6, and paragraphs 24-30.).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the method taught in Xin and Qiao with a second virtual network that is distinct from the virtual network associated with the destination taught in Satyanarayana to have the active packet data communications session is associated with a second virtual network that is distinct from the virtual network associated with the destination in order to improve the performance and help in reducing costs associated with the public cloud [Satyanarayana: paragraph 88].
Allowable Subject Matter
11. Claims 13-14 and 19 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:
12. Claims 13-14 and 19 are considered allowable because the prior arts do not teach limitations including:
" the packet data communications session request is received at a first time; and the operations further comprise: receiving, from the base station, at a second time prior to the first time, a second packet data communications session request comprising the indication of the user device and an indication of a second destination; determining a second virtual network associated with the second destination; determining, based on session management function data, that no active packet data communications session is associated with the user device; determining, based on interaction with network function repository function, the session management function; initiating, with the session management function, establishment of a second packet data communications session in the wireless communications network between the user device and the second destination; and storing and associating, in the session management function data, data indicating the user device, the second packet data communications session, and the session management function" recited in dependent claims 13 and 19.
Conclusion
13. The prior arts made of record and not relied upon are considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure include: Yang Xin et al. (US 2020/0015294 A1) is pertinent to a session management method, an access management function device, and a session management device. The method carried out by an access and mobility management network element includes: obtaining subscription data of a terminal in a first communications network and subscription data of the terminal in a second communications network, where the subscription data of the terminal in the first communications network includes a DNN, and the subscription data of the terminal in the second communications network includes an APN corresponding to the DNN; allocating a bearer identifier to a bearer in a PDN connection corresponding to the APN; receiving a flow identifier that is of a flow in a PDU session corresponding to the DNN and that is sent by a session management network element; and sending the bearer identifier and the flow identifier to the terminal. Weihua Qiao et al. (US 2019/0109823 A1) is pertinent to systems, apparatuses, and methods are described for Ethernet packet data unit (PDU) session communications. A data network may provide one or more addresses to a session management function for an Ethernet PDU session. A wireless device may provide one or more Ethernet packet filter sets to the session management function to request an Ethernet PDU session. The session management function may provide to a user plane function one or more messages comprising the one or more Ethernet packet filter sets, the one or more addresses, and/or at least one policy rule. The user plane function may apply the at least one policy rule to a data flow to provide the requested Ethernet PDU session for the wireless device.
14. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to WILL W LIN whose telephone number is (571)272-8749. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8:00-5:00.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Charles Jiang can be reached at 571-270-7191. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/WILL W LIN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2412