DETAILED ACTION
Applicant’s Application filed on December 4, 2025 has been reviewed.
Claims 1, 4, 5, 8, 11,12, 16 and 19 are amended in the amendment.
Claims 1-20 have been examined.
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 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.
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 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.
Claims 1-5, 8-12, 15-16 and 18-19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ebrahim Rezagah et al. (US 2022/0295338 A1), hereinafter referred to as Ebrahim Rezagah, in view of Bienas et al. (US 2023/0105896 A1), hereinafter referred to as Bienas, and further in view of Wen et al. (US 2026/0067223 A1), hereinafter referred to as Wen.
With respect to claim 1, Ebrahim Rezagah teaches A method, comprising:
receiving, by a radio access network (RAN), a graded quality of service (QoS) profile indicating a set of QoS profiles (the RAN obtains and considers a subset of the plurality of QoS profiles or all of the QoS profiles available in the system/network from one or more of the core network entities, para. 0188; fig. 4(a); one or more QoS profiles including one or more QoS parameters or metrics having a value fulfilling a certain criterium, e.g., a latency lower or higher than a latency threshold or a data rate lower or higher than a data rate threshold or within a certain range, para. 0198; the PDU session related information may include slice information, if supported, and the QoS flow level QoS profile, para. 0207),
detecting, by the RAN, an observed flow data rate of traffic associated with a session (the RAN detects that it is not capable to support the selected or current QoS profile any longer or detects that it is capable to support one or more of the other QoS profiles associated with the session, with a higher value of some QoS metrics than the current QoS profile, para. 0187; one or more QoS profiles including one or more QoS parameters or metrics having a value fulfilling a certain criterium, e.g., a latency lower or higher than a latency threshold or a data rate lower or higher than a data rate threshold or within a certain range, para. 0198; the PDU session related information may include slice information, if supported, and the QoS flow level QoS profile, para. 0207);
selecting, by the RAN, a QoS profile from the set of QoS profiles based on the observed flow data rate (the RAN performs QoS profile selection and/or admission control, the RAN determine from some or all of the QoS profiles associated with a session that the RAN is capable to support one or more of the other QoS profile, para. 0188; fig. 4(a); one or more QoS profiles including one or more QoS parameters or metrics having a value fulfilling a certain criterium, e.g., a latency lower or higher than a latency threshold or a data rate lower or higher than a data rate threshold or within a certain range, para. 0198); and
applying, by the RAN, the QoS profile to the session (the bearer flow is updated by the RAN with the selected QoS profile so that, the session having associated therewith the multiple QoS profiles now works with the new QoS profile, para. 0198; fig. 4(a)).
Ebrahim Rezagah does not explicitly teach
measuring, by the RAN, an observed flow data rate of traffic associated with a session;
the observed flow data rate measured by the RAN;
However, Bienas teaches
measuring, by the RAN, an observed flow data rate of traffic associated with a session (when the App triggers PDU Session setup, it will request a QoS that is suitable for real-time gaming, e.g. very low latency and mid to high range data rate, para. 0064; the PCF inform about the updated QoS for the PDU sessions and subscribe to measurement events related to these PDU sessions; the QoS measurements performed in the RAN, para. 0076; the PCF subscribes to data rate measurements at the RAN as a trigger for potential future QoS parameter changes of the PDU sessions, para. 0101);
the observed flow data rate measured by the RAN (when the App triggers PDU Session setup, it will request a QoS that is suitable for real-time gaming, e.g. very low latency and mid to high range data rate, para. 0064; the PCF inform about the updated QoS for the PDU sessions and subscribe to measurement events related to these PDU sessions; the QoS measurements performed in the RAN, para. 0076; the PCF subscribes to data rate measurements at the RAN as a trigger for potential future QoS parameter changes of the PDU sessions, para. 0101) in order to take measures to improve the QoS situation and overcome the high delay as taught by Bienas (para. 0097);
Therefore, based on Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the teaching of Bienas to the method of Ebrahim Rezagah in order to take measures to improve the QoS situation and overcome the high delay as taught by Bienas (para. 0097).
Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas does not explicitly teach wherein each QoS profile in the set of QoS profiles corresponds to a particular range of , from a plurality of ranges of observed flow data rates, for which the corresponding QoS profile is to be applied;
However, Wen teaches wherein each QoS profile in the set of QoS profiles corresponds to a particular range of , from a plurality of ranges of observed flow data rates, for which the corresponding QoS profile is to be applied (the access network device has a QoS profile 1 corresponding to 30 fps, a QoS profile 2 corresponding to 45 fps, and a QoS profile 3 corresponding to 60 fps; if the frame rate that is of the data flow of the service and that is received by the access network device is 45 fps or a frame rate, like 50 fps, close to 45 fps, the access network device determine the QoS profile 2 as the updated QoS profile of the data flow of the service, para. 0245; calculating a frame rate of the data flow of the video service, and select, based on the calculated frame rate of the data flow of the video service, a QoS profile that adapts to the calculated frame rate, to transmit the data flow of the video service, para. 0180) in order to improve network resource utilization and user experience as taught by Wen (para. 0005);
Therefore, based on Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas, and further in view of Wen, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the teaching of Wen to the method of Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas in order to improve network resource utilization and user experience as taught by Wen (para. 0005).
With respect to claim 2, Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas, and further in view of Wen teaches The method of claim 1 as described above,
Further, Bienas teaches wherein the graded QoS profile is received from a policy control function (PCF) via one or more of an access and mobility management function (AMF) or a session management function (SMF) (if the measurement data shows a delay for one PDU session to exceed the currently defined range for all PDU sessions in the group, the PCF will inform the respective SMFs about a change of QoS parameters; the SMF will inform the RAN about the QoS change, para. 0076-0077) in order to take measures to improve the QoS situation and overcome the high delay as taught by Bienas (para. 0097).
Therefore, based on Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the teaching of Bienas to the method of Ebrahim Rezagah in order to take measures to improve the QoS situation and overcome the high delay as taught by Bienas (para. 0097).
With respect to claim 3, Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas, and further in view of Wen teaches The method of claim 1 as described above,
Further, Bienas teaches wherein the set of QoS profiles are to be enforced in the RAN based on flow data rates observed in the RAN (strictly enforcing the new QoS parameters, i.e. it will delay packets of PDU sessions that still have low packet delay to equal their average delay to the PDU session(s) that have been measured to be delayed, the SMF inform the RAN about the QoS change; when the RAN are involved in enforcing the QoS, the RAN will be informed, para. 0076-0077) in order to take measures to improve the QoS situation and overcome the high delay as taught by Bienas (para. 0097).
Therefore, based on Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the teaching of Bienas to the method of Ebrahim Rezagah in order to take measures to improve the QoS situation and overcome the high delay as taught by Bienas (para. 0097).
With respect to claim 4, Ebrahim Rezagah teaches The method of claim 1, wherein the corresponding observed flow data rates are associated with one or more of uplink data rates or downlink data rates (allowing the UE to use the new QoS profile efficiently, to perform the downloads of data; the QoS profile allowing to make use of the high speed service may be enabled for a time and duration of passing the 5G hotspot allowing the UE to download the data using the high speed service, para. 0205).
With respect to claim 5, Ebrahim Rezagah teaches The method of claim 1, wherein the corresponding observed flow data rates include one or more of specific flow data rates or ranges of flow data rates (one or more QoS profiles including one or more QoS parameters or metrics having a value fulfilling a certain criterium, e.g., a latency lower or higher than a latency threshold or a data rate lower or higher than a data rate threshold or within a certain range, para. 0116).
With respect to claim 8, Ebrahim Rezagah teaches A device (the radio access network, RAN including the above-described base stations, para. 0035), comprising:
one or more processors (one or more processors, para. 0234) configured to:
receive a graded quality of service (QoS) profile indicating a set of QoS profiles (the RAN obtains and considers a subset of the plurality of QoS profiles or all of the QoS profiles available in the system/network from one or more of the core network entities, para. 0188; fig. 4(a); one or more QoS profiles including one or more QoS parameters or metrics having a value fulfilling a certain criterium, e.g., a latency lower or higher than a latency threshold or a data rate lower or higher than a data rate threshold or within a certain range, para. 0198; the PDU session related information may include slice information, if supported, and the QoS flow level QoS profile, para. 0207),
detect an observed flow data rate of traffic associated with a session (the RAN detects that it is not capable to support the selected or current QoS profile any longer or detects that it is capable to support one or more of the other QoS profiles associated with the session, with a higher value of some QoS metrics than the current QoS profile, para. 0187; one or more QoS profiles including one or more QoS parameters or metrics having a value fulfilling a certain criterium, e.g., a latency lower or higher than a latency threshold or a data rate lower or higher than a data rate threshold or within a certain range, para. 0198; the PDU session related information may include slice information, if supported, and the QoS flow level QoS profile, para. 0207);
select a QoS profile from the set of QoS profiles based on the observed flow data rate (the RAN performs QoS profile selection and/or admission control, the RAN determine from some or all of the QoS profiles associated with a session that the RAN is capable to support one or more of the other QoS profile, para. 0188; fig. 4(a); one or more QoS profiles including one or more QoS parameters or metrics having a value fulfilling a certain criterium, e.g., a latency lower or higher than a latency threshold or a data rate lower or higher than a data rate threshold or within a certain range, para. 0198); and
apply the QoS profile to the session (the bearer flow is updated by the RAN with the selected QoS profile so that, the session having associated therewith the multiple QoS profiles now works with the new QoS profile, para. 0198; fig. 4(a)).
Ebrahim Rezagah does not explicitly teach
measure an observed flow data rate of traffic associated with a session;
the observed flow data rate measured by the RAN;
However, Bienas teaches
measuring, by the RAN, an observed flow data rate of traffic associated with a session (when the App triggers PDU Session setup, it will request a QoS that is suitable for real-time gaming, e.g. very low latency and mid to high range data rate, para. 0064; the PCF inform about the updated QoS for the PDU sessions and subscribe to measurement events related to these PDU sessions; the QoS measurements performed in the RAN, para. 0076; the PCF subscribes to data rate measurements at the RAN as a trigger for potential future QoS parameter changes of the PDU sessions, para. 0101);
the observed flow data rate measured by the RAN (when the App triggers PDU Session setup, it will request a QoS that is suitable for real-time gaming, e.g. very low latency and mid to high range data rate, para. 0064; the PCF inform about the updated QoS for the PDU sessions and subscribe to measurement events related to these PDU sessions; the QoS measurements performed in the RAN, para. 0076; the PCF subscribes to data rate measurements at the RAN as a trigger for potential future QoS parameter changes of the PDU sessions, para. 0101) in order to take measures to improve the QoS situation and overcome the high delay as taught by Bienas (para. 0097);
Therefore, based on Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the teaching of Bienas to the device of Ebrahim Rezagah in order to take measures to improve the QoS situation and overcome the high delay as taught by Bienas (para. 0097).
Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas does not explicitly teach wherein each QoS profile in the set of QoS profiles corresponds to a particular range of , from a plurality of ranges of observed flow data rates, for which the corresponding QoS profile is to be applied;
However, Wen teaches wherein each QoS profile in the set of QoS profiles corresponds to a particular range of , from a plurality of ranges of observed flow data rates, for which the corresponding QoS profile is to be applied (the access network device has a QoS profile 1 corresponding to 30 fps, a QoS profile 2 corresponding to 45 fps, and a QoS profile 3 corresponding to 60 fps; if the frame rate that is of the data flow of the service and that is received by the access network device is 45 fps or a frame rate, like 50 fps, close to 45 fps, the access network device determine the QoS profile 2 as the updated QoS profile of the data flow of the service, para. 0245; calculating a frame rate of the data flow of the video service, and select, based on the calculated frame rate of the data flow of the video service, a QoS profile that adapts to the calculated frame rate, to transmit the data flow of the video service, para. 0180) in order to improve network resource utilization and user experience as taught by Wen (para. 0005);
Therefore, based on Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas, and further in view of Wen, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the teaching of Wen to the device of Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas in order to improve network resource utilization and user experience as taught by Wen (para. 0005).
With respect to claim 9, Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas, and further in view of Wen teaches The device of claim 8 as described above,
Further, Bienas teaches wherein the graded QoS profile is received from a policy control function (PCF) via one or more of an access and mobility management function (AMF) or a session management function (SMF) (if the measurement data shows a delay for one PDU session to exceed the currently defined range for all PDU sessions in the group, the PCF will inform the respective SMFs about a change of QoS parameters; the SMF will inform the RAN about the QoS change, para. 0076-0077) in order to take measures to improve the QoS situation and overcome the high delay as taught by Bienas (para. 0097).
Therefore, based on Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the teaching of Bienas to the device of Ebrahim Rezagah in order to take measures to improve the QoS situation and overcome the high delay as taught by Bienas (para. 0097).
With respect to claim 10, Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas, and further in view of Wen teaches The device of claim 8 as described above,
Further, Bienas teaches wherein the set of QoS profiles are to be enforced in a radio access network (RAN) based on flow data rates observed in the RAN (strictly enforcing the new QoS parameters, i.e. it will delay packets of PDU sessions that still have low packet delay to equal their average delay to the PDU session(s) that have been measured to be delayed, the SMF inform the RAN about the QoS change; when the RAN are involved in enforcing the QoS, the RAN will be informed, para. 0076-0077) in order to take measures to improve the QoS situation and overcome the high delay as taught by Bienas (para. 0097).
Therefore, based on Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the teaching of Bienas to the device of Ebrahim Rezagah in order to take measures to improve the QoS situation and overcome the high delay as taught by Bienas (para. 0097).
With respect to claim 11, Ebrahim Rezagah teaches The device of claim 8, wherein the corresponding observed flow data rates are associated with one or more of uplink data rates or downlink data rates (allowing the UE to use the new QoS profile efficiently, to perform the downloads of data; the QoS profile allowing to make use of the high speed service may be enabled for a time and duration of passing the 5G hotspot allowing the UE to download the data using the high speed service, para. 0205).
With respect to claim 12, Ebrahim Rezagah teaches The device of claim 8, wherein the corresponding observed flow data rates include one or more of specific flow data rates or ranges of flow data rates (one or more QoS profiles including one or more QoS parameters or metrics having a value fulfilling a certain criterium, e.g., a latency lower or higher than a latency threshold or a data rate lower or higher than a data rate threshold or within a certain range, para. 0116).
With respect to claim 15, Ebrahim Rezagah teaches The device of claim 8, wherein the device is associated with a radio access network (RAN) (the radio access network, RAN including the above-described base stations, para. 0035).
With respect to claim 16, Ebrahim Rezagah teaches A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing a set of instructions (computer readable medium” for providing computer programs, when executed, enables processor to implement the processes, para. 0235), the set of instructions comprising:
one or more instructions that, when executed by one or more processors of a device (the radio access network, RAN including the above-described base stations, para. 0035; computer readable medium” for providing computer programs, when executed, enables processor to implement the processes, para. 0235), cause the device to:
receive a graded quality of service (QoS) profile indicating a set of QoS profiles (the RAN obtains and considers a subset of the plurality of QoS profiles or all of the QoS profiles available in the system/network from one or more of the core network entities, para. 0188; fig. 4(a); one or more QoS profiles including one or more QoS parameters or metrics having a value fulfilling a certain criterium, e.g., a latency lower or higher than a latency threshold or a data rate lower or higher than a data rate threshold or within a certain range, para. 0198; the PDU session related information may include slice information, if supported, and the QoS flow level QoS profile, para. 0207),
detect an observed flow data rate of traffic associated with a session (the RAN detects that it is not capable to support the selected or current QoS profile any longer or detects that it is capable to support one or more of the other QoS profiles associated with the session, with a higher value of some QoS metrics than the current QoS profile, para. 0187; one or more QoS profiles including one or more QoS parameters or metrics having a value fulfilling a certain criterium, e.g., a latency lower or higher than a latency threshold or a data rate lower or higher than a data rate threshold or within a certain range, para. 0198; the PDU session related information may include slice information, if supported, and the QoS flow level QoS profile, para. 0207);
select a QoS profile from the set of QoS profiles based on the observed flow data rate (the RAN performs QoS profile selection and/or admission control, the RAN determine from some or all of the QoS profiles associated with a session that the RAN is capable to support one or more of the other QoS profile, para. 0188; fig. 4(a); one or more QoS profiles including one or more QoS parameters or metrics having a value fulfilling a certain criterium, e.g., a latency lower or higher than a latency threshold or a data rate lower or higher than a data rate threshold or within a certain range, para. 0198); and
apply the QoS profile to the session (the bearer flow is updated by the RAN with the selected QoS profile so that, the session having associated therewith the multiple QoS profiles now works with the new QoS profile, para. 0198; fig. 4(a)).
Ebrahim Rezagah does not explicitly teach
measuring, by the RAN, an observed flow data rate of traffic associated with a session;
the observed flow data rate measured by the RAN;
However, Bienas teaches
measuring, by the RAN, an observed flow data rate of traffic associated with a session (when the App triggers PDU Session setup, it will request a QoS that is suitable for real-time gaming, e.g. very low latency and mid to high range data rate, para. 0064; the PCF inform about the updated QoS for the PDU sessions and subscribe to measurement events related to these PDU sessions; the QoS measurements performed in the RAN, para. 0076; the PCF subscribes to data rate measurements at the RAN as a trigger for potential future QoS parameter changes of the PDU sessions, para. 0101);
the observed flow data rate measured by the RAN (when the App triggers PDU Session setup, it will request a QoS that is suitable for real-time gaming, e.g. very low latency and mid to high range data rate, para. 0064; the PCF inform about the updated QoS for the PDU sessions and subscribe to measurement events related to these PDU sessions; the QoS measurements performed in the RAN, para. 0076; the PCF subscribes to data rate measurements at the RAN as a trigger for potential future QoS parameter changes of the PDU sessions, para. 0101) in order to take measures to improve the QoS situation and overcome the high delay as taught by Bienas (para. 0097);
Therefore, based on Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the teaching of Bienas to the medium of Ebrahim Rezagah in order to take measures to improve the QoS situation and overcome the high delay as taught by Bienas (para. 0097).
Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas does not explicitly teach wherein each QoS profile in the set of QoS profiles corresponds to a particular range of , from a plurality of ranges of observed flow data rates, for which the corresponding QoS profile is to be applied;
However, Wen teaches wherein each QoS profile in the set of QoS profiles corresponds to a particular range of , from a plurality of ranges of observed flow data rates, for which the corresponding QoS profile is to be applied (the access network device has a QoS profile 1 corresponding to 30 fps, a QoS profile 2 corresponding to 45 fps, and a QoS profile 3 corresponding to 60 fps; if the frame rate that is of the data flow of the service and that is received by the access network device is 45 fps or a frame rate, like 50 fps, close to 45 fps, the access network device determine the QoS profile 2 as the updated QoS profile of the data flow of the service, para. 0245; calculating a frame rate of the data flow of the video service, and select, based on the calculated frame rate of the data flow of the video service, a QoS profile that adapts to the calculated frame rate, to transmit the data flow of the video service, para. 0180) in order to improve network resource utilization and user experience as taught by Wen (para. 0005);
Therefore, based on Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas, and further in view of Wen, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the teaching of Wen to the medium of Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas in order to improve network resource utilization and user experience as taught by Wen (para. 0005).
With respect to claim 18, Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas, and further in view of Wen teaches The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 16 as described above,
Further, Bienas teaches wherein the set of QoS profiles are to be enforced in a radio access network (RAN) based on flow data rates observed in the RAN (strictly enforcing the new QoS parameters, i.e. it will delay packets of PDU sessions that still have low packet delay to equal their average delay to the PDU session(s) that have been measured to be delayed, the SMF inform the RAN about the QoS change; when the RAN are involved in enforcing the QoS, the RAN will be informed, para. 0076-0077) in order to take measures to improve the QoS situation and overcome the high delay as taught by Bienas (para. 0097).
Therefore, based on Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the teaching of Bienas to the medium of Ebrahim Rezagah in order to take measures to improve the QoS situation and overcome the high delay as taught by Bienas (para. 0097).
With respect to claim 19, Ebrahim Rezagah teaches The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 16, wherein:
the corresponding observed flow data rates are associated with one or more of uplink data rates or downlink data rates (allowing the UE to use the new QoS profile efficiently, to perform the downloads of data; the QoS profile allowing to make use of the high speed service may be enabled for a time and duration of passing the 5G hotspot allowing the UE to download the data using the high speed service, para. 0205); and
the corresponding observed flow data rates include one or more of specific flow data rates or ranges of flow data rates (one or more QoS profiles including one or more QoS parameters or metrics having a value fulfilling a certain criterium, e.g., a latency lower or higher than a latency threshold or a data rate lower or higher than a data rate threshold or within a certain range, para. 0116).
Claims 6, 13 and 17 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ebrahim Rezagah et al. (US 2022/0295338 A1), hereinafter referred to as Ebrahim Rezagah, in view of Bienas et al. (US 2023/0105896 A1), hereinafter referred to as Bienas, further in view of Wen et al. (US 2026/0067223 A1), hereinafter referred to as Wen, and furthermore in view of Wei et al. (US 2024/0064557 A1), hereinafter referred to as Wei.
With respect to claim 6, Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas, and further in view of Wen teaches The method of claim 1 as described above,
Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas, and further in view of Wen does not explicitly teach wherein the graded QoS profile is received during a session management establishment procedure.
However, Wei teaches wherein the graded QoS profile is received during a session management establishment procedure (SMF 508 provides QoS Group information to RAN as part of Session Management (SM) information using PDU session establishment procedure, para. 0220) in order to avoid waste of resources as taught by Wei (para. 0139).
Therefore, based on Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas, further in view of Wen, and furthermore in view of Wei, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the teaching of Wei to the method of Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas, and further in view of Wen in order to avoid waste of resources as taught by Wei (para. 0139).
With respect to claim 13, Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas, and further in view of Wen teaches The device of claim 8 as described above,
Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas, and further in view of Wen does not explicitly teach wherein the graded QoS profile is received during a session management establishment procedure.
However, Wei teaches wherein the graded QoS profile is received during a session management establishment procedure (SMF 508 provides QoS Group information to RAN as part of Session Management (SM) information using PDU session establishment procedure, para. 0220) in order to avoid waste of resources as taught by Wei (para. 0139).
Therefore, based on Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas, further in view of Wen, and furthermore in view of Wei, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the teaching of Wei to the device of Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas, and further in view of Wen in order to avoid waste of resources as taught by Wei (para. 0139).
With respect to claim 17, Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas, further in view of Wen, and furthermore in view of Wei teaches The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 16 as described above,
Further, Bienas teaches wherein the graded QoS profile is received from a policy control function (PCF) via one or more of an access and mobility management function (AMF) or a session management function (SMF) (if the measurement data shows a delay for one PDU session to exceed the currently defined range for all PDU sessions in the group, the PCF will inform the respective SMFs about a change of QoS parameters; the SMF will inform the RAN about the QoS change, para. 0076-0077) in order to take measures to improve the QoS situation and overcome the high delay as taught by Bienas (para. 0097), and
Therefore, based on Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the teaching of Bienas to the medium of Ebrahim Rezagah in order to take measures to improve the QoS situation and overcome the high delay as taught by Bienas (para. 0097).
And furthermore, Wei teaches the graded QoS profile is received during a session management establishment procedure (SMF 508 provides QoS Group information to RAN as part of Session Management (SM) information using PDU session establishment procedure, para. 0220) in order to avoid waste of resources as taught by Wei (para. 0139).
Therefore, based on Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas, further in view of Wen, and furthermore in view of Wei, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the teaching of Wei to the medium of Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas, and further in view of Wen in order to avoid waste of resources as taught by Wei (para. 0139).
Claims 7, 14 and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ebrahim Rezagah et al. (US 2022/0295338 A1), hereinafter referred to as Ebrahim Rezagah, in view of Bienas et al. (US 2023/0105896 A1), hereinafter referred to as Bienas, further in view of Wen et al. (US 2026/0067223 A1), hereinafter referred to as Wen, and furthermore in view of Alonso et al. (US 2023/0137509 A1), hereinafter referred to as Alonso.
With respect to claim 7, Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas, and further in view of Wen teaches The method of claim 1 as described above,
Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas, and further in view of Wen does not explicitly teach further comprising:
transmitting, by the RAN and to a policy control function (PCF), an indication of the QoS profile applied to the session.
However, Alonso teaches further comprising:
transmitting, by the RAN and to a policy control function (PCF), an indication of the QoS profile applied to the session (when the NG-RAN sends a notification to the SMF that the QoS profile is currently fulfilled values match an Alternative QoS Profile, also include the reference to the Alternative QoS Profile to indicate the QoS that the NG-RAN currently fulfils; the SMF notify the PCF about the alternative QoS Profile, para. 0047; the SMF 102 enforces the alternative Charging Profile or the charging data that applies according to whether the RAN 104 is informing about the alternative QoS profile enforced; the SMF 102 informs the PCF 100 accordingly, including the Alternative QoS profile, para. 0081) in order to indicate the QoS profile are being enforced for the session as taught by Alonso (para. 0075).
Therefore, based on Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas, further in view of Wen, and furthermore in view of Alonso, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the teaching of Alonso to the method of Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas, and further in view of Wen in order to indicate the QoS profile are being enforced for the session as taught by Alonso (para. 0075).
With respect to claim 14, Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas, and further in view of Wen teaches The device of claim 8 as described above,
Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas, and further in view of Wen does not explicitly teach wherein the one or more processors are further configured to:
transmit, to a policy control function (PCF), an indication of the QoS profile applied to the session.
However, Alonso teaches teach wherein the one or more processors are further configured to:
transmit, to a policy control function (PCF), an indication of the QoS profile applied to the session (when the NG-RAN sends a notification to the SMF that the QoS profile is currently fulfilled values match an Alternative QoS Profile, also include the reference to the Alternative QoS Profile to indicate the QoS that the NG-RAN currently fulfils; the SMF notify the PCF about the alternative QoS Profile, para. 0047; the SMF 102 enforces the alternative Charging Profile or the charging data that applies according to whether the RAN 104 is informing about the alternative QoS profile enforced; the SMF 102 informs the PCF 100 accordingly, including the Alternative QoS profile, para. 0081) in order to indicate the QoS profile are being enforced for the session as taught by Alonso (para. 0075).
Therefore, based on Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas, further in view of Wen, and furthermore in view of Alonso, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the teaching of Alonso to the device of Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas, and further in view of Wen in order to indicate the QoS profile are being enforced for the session as taught by Alonso (para. 0075).
With respect to claim 20, Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas, and further in view of Wen teaches The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 16 as described above,
Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas, and further in view of Wen does not explicitly teach wherein the one or more instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, further cause the device to:
transmit, to a policy control function (PCF), an indication of the QoS profile applied to the session.
However, Alonso teaches wherein the one or more instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, further cause the device to:
transmit, to a policy control function (PCF), an indication of the QoS profile applied to the session (when the NG-RAN sends a notification to the SMF that the QoS profile is currently fulfilled values match an Alternative QoS Profile, also include the reference to the Alternative QoS Profile to indicate the QoS that the NG-RAN currently fulfils; the SMF notify the PCF about the alternative QoS Profile, para. 0047; the SMF 102 enforces the alternative Charging Profile or the charging data that applies according to whether the RAN 104 is informing about the alternative QoS profile enforced; the SMF 102 informs the PCF 100 accordingly, including the Alternative QoS profile, para. 0081) in order to indicate the QoS profile are being enforced for the session as taught by Alonso (para. 0075).
Therefore, based on Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas, further in view of Wen, and furthermore in view of Alonso, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the teaching of Alonso to the medium of Ebrahim Rezagah in view of Bienas, and further in view of Wen in order to indicate the QoS profile are being enforced for the session as taught by Alonso (para. 0075).
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claims 1-20 have been considered but are moot because the arguments do not apply to any of the references being used in the current rejection.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). 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 extension fee 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 date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to HAO HONG NGUYEN whose telephone number is (571)272-2666. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday-Friday 8AM-4:30PM EST.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, JOON H. HWANG can be reached on 571-272-4036. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of an application may be obtained from the Patent Application Information Retrieval (PAIR) system. Status information for published applications may be obtained from either Private PAIR or Public PAIR. Status information for unpublished applications is available through Private PAIR only. For more information about the PAIR system, see http://pair-direct.uspto.gov. Should you have questions on access to the Private PAIR system, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative or access to the automated information system, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/H.H.N/Examiner, Art Unit 2447
March 27, 2026
/JOON H HWANG/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2447