-Response to Amendment
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 .
The amendment dated 12/9/25 has been received and made of record.
Claims 3-4, 6, and 8-10 and 17-18 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 applicant’s arguments with respect to claims 1, 15, 22 and 29 have fully considered but are moot in view of a new grounds of rejection necessitated by the amendment to independent claims 1, 15, 22 and 29.
For example , applicant alleges “Shihi does not disclose wherein the information corresponding to the one or more target network slices comprises: second indication information indicating whether a target cell supports the one or more target network slices requested by the terminal device; wherein the target cell comprises at least one of a serving cell of the terminal device or a neighboring cell of the terminal device”.
In response, examiner asserts newly cited reference “Awada” discloses wherein the information corresponding to the one or more target network slices comprises: second indication information indicating whether a target cell supports the one or more target network slices requested by the terminal device(see par. 0170, where target cell is free to accept or reject any HO requests depending, for example, on its resource utilization and supported features); wherein the target cell comprises at least one of a serving cell of the terminal device or a neighboring cell of the terminal device(see the abstract and par. 0170 where the source cell receives from the target cell which is acting as serving cell , indications in a handover request acknowledgement of one or more selected network slices to be handed over from the source cell to the target cell using enhanced handovers). in this way the target cell can be made flexible so that the source cell can freely choose for which services/slices the cell wants to support the enhanced HO even for the same UE.
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.
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.
Claims 1, 2, 11-16, 19, 21, 22, and 29 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Shihi et al. U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2018/0352491 [herein after Shihi] in view of Awada et al. U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2022/0124587[hereinafter Awada]
As per claim 1, 15, 22 and 29 Shihi discloses an information obtaining method, performed by a terminal device (paragraphs [0076], [0078]-[0080], [0084]-[0092], [0106]-[0123] control signaling revealing the UE's network slice capability, between the UE and eLTE eNB/cell and figures 8-23), comprising:
sending a request message to a network device, the request message being used for requesting information of one or more target network slices required by the terminal device (paragraphs [0076], [0078]-[O080], [0084]-[0092], [(0106]- [0123] RRC Connection Request; RRC System Information Request; RRC message may include slice IDs and/or network slice type ID (NS-ID) to directly identify the type of network slice and/or required/requested service the UE needs; RRC message may carry the network slice indication (NS Indication), to indicate the network slice requirement instead of explicitly revealing the slice service type [i.e., requesting information of one or more target network slices required by the terminal device] and figures 8-23); and
receiving a response message sent by the network device, the response message carrying information corresponding to the one or more target network slices (paragraphs [0076], [0078]-[0080], [0084]-[0092], [0106]-[0123] After eLTE eNB/cell 904 acquires the information regarding which eLTE eNB s/ cells and NR gNBs/cells support VE 902's network slice/service request [i.e., information corresponding to the one or more target network slices], eLTE eNB/cell 904 may respond to UE 902 with an RRC message (e.g., RRC Connection Reject or RRC Connection Reconfiguration), where the RRC message includes information such as target NR gNB/cell/beam or LTE eNB/cell or eLTE eNB/cell ID, and/or_a list of suitable NR gNB/cell/beam IDs and/or LTE eNB/cell IDs and/or eLTE eNB/cell IDs, and/or specific preamble of the target NR gNB/cell or LTE eNB/cell or eLTE eNB/cell, and/ or target NR SS (Synchronization Signal) block/burst/burst set configuration, and/or a list of suitable NR SS block/burst/burst set configurations; Providing the beam information and the SS block/burst/ burst set configurations to UE 902 may be beneficial, when different beams can support different network slices [i.e., receiving a response message sent by the network device, the response message carrying information corresponding to the one or more target network slices] and figures 8-23).
Shihi does not explicitly disclose wherein the information corresponding to the one or more target network slices comprises: second indication information indicating whether a target cell supports the one or more target network slices requested by the terminal device; wherein the target cell comprises at least one of a serving cell of the terminal device or a neighboring cell of the terminal device.
Awada discloses wherein the information corresponding to the one or more target network slices comprises: second indication information indicating whether a target cell supports the one or more target network slices requested by the terminal device(see par. 0170, where target cell is free to accept or reject any HO requests depending, for example, on its resource utilization and supported features); wherein the target cell comprises at least one of a serving cell of the terminal device or a neighboring cell of the terminal device(see the abstract and par. 0170 where the source cell receives from the target cell which is acting as serving cell , indications in a handover request acknowledgement of one or more selected network slices to be handed over from the source cell to the target cell using enhanced handovers).Therefore, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in thew art prior to effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the teachings of Awada into the system of
Shihi in this way the target cell can be made flexible so that the source cell can freely choose for which services/slices the cell wants to support the enhanced HO even for the same UE.
As per claim 2, and 16 Shih discloses the information obtaining method according to claim 1, wherein the request message comprises one or more parameters of the one or more target network slices; wherein each of the one or more parameters of the one or more target network slices comprises one or more of following: a slice/service type SST, a slice/service type slice differentiator SST-SD, single network slice selection assistance information NSSAI(see par. 0069).
As per claim 11, Shih discloses the information obtaining method according to claim 1, wherein the information corresponding to the one or more target network slices comprises: second indication information indicating whether a target cell supports the one or more target network slices requested by the terminal device; wherein the target cell comprises at least one of a serving cell of the terminal device or a neighboring cell of the terminal device(see par. 0134).
As per claim 12, Shih discloses the information obtaining method according to claim 11, wherein the information corresponding to the target network slice further comprises: a configuration parameter of a network slice that is supported by the target cell and is different from the one or more target network slices(see par. 0089).
As per claim 13, Shih discloses the information obtaining method according to claim 11, wherein, in case that the second indication information indicates that the target cell supports the one or more target network slices requested by the terminal device, the information corresponding to the one or more target network slices further comprises: one or more configuration parameters of the one or more target network slices(see par. 0120, 0161).
As per claim 14, Shih discloses the information obtaining method according to claim 1, wherein, after the receiving the response message sent by the network device, the method further comprises: judging, according to the response message, whether to camp in a serving cell, whether to establish an RRC connection, whether to recover an RRC connection establishment, or whether to perform cell reselection(see par. 0078, 0089).
As per claim 19 Shihi discloses the information sending method according to claim 16, wherein the request message further comprises neighboring cell indication information indicating a neighboring cell of the terminal device; (see par. 0073, 0154), wherein the neighboring cell indication information comprises one or more of following: a physical cell identifier PCI, a cell global identifier CGI, and frequency information(see par. 0073, 0154).
As per claim 21, Shihi discloses the information sending method according to claim 19, wherein the determining the information corresponding to the one or more target network slices according to the request message comprises: obtaining the one or more target network slices according to the request message(see par. 0017, 0119-0120); determining whether a neighboring cell of the terminal device corresponding to the neighboring cell indication information supports the one or more target network slices(see par. 0019, 0134); and determining that second indication information indicating whether the neighboring cell of the terminal device supports the one or more target network slices is the information corresponding to the one or more target network slices.(see par. 0134-0135).
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 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.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ABDULLAHI ELMI SALAD whose telephone number is (571)272-4009. The examiner can normally be reached 9:30AM-6:PM.
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/ABDULLAHI E SALAD/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2466