Prosecution Insights
Last updated: July 17, 2026
Application No. 18/427,705

ROAMING MANAGEMENT BY SIM APPLET

Non-Final OA §103
Filed
Jan 30, 2024
Examiner
TAYLOR, BARRY W
Art Unit
2646
Tech Center
2600 — Communications
Assignee
T-Mobile USA Inc.
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
75%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
1m
Est. Remaining
80%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 75% — above average
75%
Career Allowance Rate
716 granted / 952 resolved
+13.2% vs TC avg
Minimal +4% lift
Without
With
+4.3%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 6m
Avg Prosecution
19 currently pending
Career history
975
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
0.8%
-39.2% vs TC avg
§103
90.1%
+50.1% vs TC avg
§102
3.6%
-36.4% vs TC avg
§112
0.2%
-39.8% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 952 resolved cases

Office Action

§103
CTNF 18/427,705 CTNF 77638 DETAILED ACTION Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status 07-03-aia AIA 15-10-aia The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103 07-06 AIA 15-10-15 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. 07-20-aia AIA 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. 07-20-02-aia AIA 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. 07-21-aia AIA 1. Claim s 15-16 and 18-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ophir et al (2006/0052113) in view of Ahluwalia et al (2024/0340633) . Regarding claim 15. Ophir teaches a wireless communication device, comprising: a radio transceiver; a first processor; a first non-transitory memory; and a subscriber identity module (SIM) ( 0096-0097 – wherein mobile handset comprises transceiver, memory, program and s SIM) , wherein the SIM comprises a second processor (0096-0097 – a SIM applet installed on the SIM card) , a second non-transitory memory storing network keys that the radio transceiver uses to authenticate to a cell site (0113 – authentication is carried out via embedded SIM which store authentication keys for authenticating the SIM to the cellular/mobile network) , and an applet stored in the second non-transitory memory that, when executed by the second processor, sends a request to know where the wireless communication device is to the first processor (0096-0097 – SIM applet can fetch (e.g., PROVIDE LOCAL INFORMATION) the current location information from the mobile handset, including the Cell ID of the current cell) , receives an answer from the first processor containing a cell global identifier (CGI) of a first cell site that the radio transceiver is attached to (0096-0097 – SIM applet can fetch (e.g., PROVIDE LOCAL INFORMATION) the current location information from the mobile handset, including the Cell ID ( e.g., CGI as defined at applicants specification as published at 0030 and 0035 – a cell ID ) of the current cell) and containing a received signal strength of the first cell site , determines that the received signal strength of the first cell site is below a predefined threshold , and sends a refresh command to the first processor (0096-0097 – the applet can use such a proactive command periodically, say every X seconds) . Ophir does not explicitly teach using signal strength information. Ahluwalia teaches using a SIM applet to fetch cell ID and RSSI, RSRP, RSRQ, dBM and so forth from the UE. The SIM-based application may automatically direct the UE to find another network/RAT while roaming (0014, 0017, 0031, 0045, 0065) and uses a refresh/reset command (figure 1 at step 7 – REFRESH/REST and step 8 – REFRESH, 0036-0037, 0052, 0069) and SIM stores authentication keys for authenticating the SIM to a cellular/mobile network (0016, 0025, 0043). It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify Ophir to use cell ID in conjunction with RSSI, RSRP, RSRQ, dBM and so forth as taught by Ahluwalia enabling the SIM-based application to automatically direct the UE to find another network/RAT while roaming even when a rejection is received (Ahluwalia at 0014), as well as, eliminate/reduce the reliance on a customer calling into customer care and/or roaming assistance centers (Ahluwalia at 0015). Regarding claim 16. Ophir teaches wherein the applet is executed by the second processor when the wireless communication device is roaming (0020-0022, 0083, 0096-0097). Ahluwalia teaches using a SIM applet to fetch cell ID and RSSI, RSRP, RSRQ, dBM and so forth from the UE. The SIM-based application may automatically direct the UE to find another network/RAT while roaming (0014, 0017, 0031, 0045, 0065) and uses a refresh/reset command (figure 1 at step 7 – REFRESH/REST and step 8 – REFRESH, 0036-0037, 0052, 0069) and SIM stores authentication keys for authenticating the SIM to a cellular/mobile network (0016, 0025, 0043). Regarding claim 18. Ophir teaches wherein the applet is executed by the second processor periodically between every 30 seconds and every 90 seconds (0097- the applet can use such a proactive command periodically, say every x seconds which is clearly a design choice). Regarding claim 19. Ophir teaches wherein the wireless communication device is a smart phone, a mobile phone, a wearable computer, a headset computer, a laptop computer, a tablet computer, or a notebook computer (0095-0098 – mobile phone). Ahluwalia teaches using a SIM applet to fetch cell ID and RSSI, RSRP, RSRQ, dBM and so forth from the UE. The SIM-based application may automatically direct the UE to find another network/RAT while roaming (0014, 0017, 0031, 0045, 0065) and uses a refresh/reset command (figure 1 at step 7 – REFRESH/REST and step 8 – REFRESH, 0036-0037, 0052, 0069) and SIM stores authentication keys for authenticating the SIM to a cellular/mobile network (0016, 0025, 0043). Regarding claim 20. Ophir teaches wherein the radio transceiver is configured to establish a wireless communication link with a cell site according to a 5G, a long-term evolution (LTE), a code division multiple access (CDMA), or a global system for mobile communications (GSM) telecommunication protocol (0094-0098 – handsets already deployed in the market, for example, applicable for both GSM and CDMA cellular networks. Ahluwalia teaches 5G and 4G/LTE (0018) . 07-21-aia AIA 2. Claim 17 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ophir in view of Ahluwalia further in view of MacNaughtan et al (2010/0248640) . Regarding claim 17. Ophir in view of Ahluwalia do not explicitly teach wherein the applet is executed by the second processor when the wireless communication device is roaming and when the wireless communication device is in idle mode. MacNaughtan teaches using a Motorola V3 GSM mobile phone, a handset model which supports only cell ID measurements in idle mode , during which time a STK applet on the SIM card collects a series of measurements (0169). It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify Ophir in view of Ahluwalia to use a Motorola V3 GSM mobile phone as taught by MacNaughtan in order to have the UE search for a cell ID only when the UE is in idle mode thereby reducing voice call failures . Allowable Subject Matter 12-151-07 AIA 07-97 12-51-07 3. Claim s 1-14 are allowed. Conclusion 07-96 AIA 4. The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. ---(2005/0037755) Hind et al teaches rescanning when UE roams (0067-0068) in conjunction with using a rescan timer (0080). 5. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to BARRY W TAYLOR whose telephone number is (571)272-7509. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Thursday: 7-5. Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice. If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Matthew Anderson can be reached at 571-272-4177. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300. Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000. /BARRY W TAYLOR/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2646 Application/Control Number: 18/427,705 Page 2 Art Unit: 2646 Application/Control Number: 18/427,705 Page 3 Art Unit: 2646 Application/Control Number: 18/427,705 Page 4 Art Unit: 2646
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Jan 30, 2024
Application Filed
Jun 05, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §103 (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

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Subscription Identifier Concealment in a Communication Network
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3y 5m to grant Granted Jun 23, 2026
Patent 12659725
METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR HANDLING USER EQUIPMENT RADIO CAPABILITY IDENTIFICATION (URC-ID) ASSIGNMENT PROCEDURE
3y 7m to grant Granted Jun 16, 2026
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Patent 12634678
PUSHING ESIM FUNCTIONALITY TO USER DEVICES BY CELLULAR NETWORKS
3y 5m to grant Granted May 19, 2026
Study what changed to get past this examiner. Based on 5 most recent grants.

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Prosecution Projections

1-2
Expected OA Rounds
75%
Grant Probability
80%
With Interview (+4.3%)
2y 6m (~1m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 952 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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