Prosecution Insights
Last updated: April 19, 2026
Application No. 18/556,336

METHOD FOR PROCESSING A REQUEST TO ACTIVATE AT LEAST ONE INTERFACE OF AN ITEM OF HOST EQUIPMENT WITH AT LEAST ONE LOCAL AREA COMMUNICATION NETWORK MANAGED BY THE HOST EQUIPMENT, METHOD FOR REQUESTING ACTIVATION OF THE AT LEAST ONE INTERFACE AND CORRESPONDING DEVICES, HOST EQUIPMENT, TERMINAL EQUIPMENT, MANAGEMENT SYSTEM AND COMPUTER PROGRAMS

Non-Final OA §102
Filed
Oct 19, 2023
Examiner
SALAD, ABDULLAHI ELMI
Art Unit
2466
Tech Center
2400 — Computer Networks
Assignee
Orange
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
85%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
3y 2m
To Grant
94%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 85% — above average
85%
Career Allow Rate
820 granted / 967 resolved
+26.8% vs TC avg
Moderate +9% lift
Without
With
+9.4%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
3y 2m
Avg Prosecution
26 currently pending
Career history
993
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
9.1%
-30.9% vs TC avg
§103
48.5%
+8.5% vs TC avg
§102
20.4%
-19.6% vs TC avg
§112
4.0%
-36.0% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 967 resolved cases

Office Action

§102
Detailed Office 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. This office action is in response to the communication dated 10/19/23. Claims 1-18 are pen ding Allowable Subject Matter Claims 7-10 and 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. Claim Interpretation The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(f): (f) Element in Claim for a Combination. – An element in a claim for a combination may be expressed as a means or step for performing a specified function without the recital of structure, material, or acts in support thereof, and such claim shall be construed to cover the corresponding structure, material, or acts described in the specification and equivalents thereof. The following is a quotation of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph: An element in a claim for a combination may be expressed as a means or step for performing a specified function without the recital of structure, material, or acts in support thereof, and such claim shall be construed to cover the corresponding structure, material, or acts described in the specification and equivalents thereof. The claims in this application are given their broadest reasonable interpretation using the plain meaning of the claim language in light of the specification as it would be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art. The broadest reasonable interpretation of a claim element (also commonly referred to as a claim limitation) is limited by the description in the specification when 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, is invoked. As explained in MPEP § 2181, subsection I, claim limitations that meet the following three-prong test will be interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph: (A) the claim limitation uses the term “means” or “step” or a term used as a substitute for “means” that is a generic placeholder (also called a nonce term or a non-structural term having no specific structural meaning) for performing the claimed function; (B) the term “means” or “step” or the generic placeholder is modified by functional language, typically, but not always linked by the transition word “for” (e.g., “means for”) or another linking word or phrase, such as “configured to” or “so that”; and (C) the term “means” or “step” or the generic placeholder is not modified by sufficient structure, material, or acts for performing the claimed function. Use of the word “means” (or “step”) in a claim with functional language creates a rebuttable presumption that the claim limitation is to be treated in accordance with 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph. The presumption that the claim limitation is interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, is rebutted when the claim limitation recites sufficient structure, material, or acts to entirely perform the recited function. Absence of the word “means” (or “step”) in a claim creates a rebuttable presumption that the claim limitation is not to be treated in accordance with 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph. The presumption that the claim limitation is not interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, is rebutted when the claim limitation recites function without reciting sufficient structure, material or acts to entirely perform the recited function. Claim limitations in this application that use the word “means” (or “step”) are being interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, except as otherwise indicated in an Office action. Conversely, claim limitations in this application that do not use the word “means” (or “step”) are not being interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, except as otherwise indicated in an Office action. This application includes one or more claim limitations that use the word “means” or “step” but are nonetheless not being interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph because the claim limitation(s) recite(s) sufficient structure, materials, or acts to entirely perform the recited function. Such claim limitation(s) is/are: “Host equipment configured----; Terminal Equipment configured----" in claim s 16 and 17 . Because this/these claim limitation(s) is/are not being interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, it/they is/are not being interpreted to cover only the corresponding structure, material, or acts described in the specification as performing the claimed function, and equivalents thereof. If applicant intends to have this/these limitation(s) interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, applicant may: (1) amend the claim limitation(s) to remove the structure, materials, or acts that performs the claimed function; or (2) present a sufficient showing that the claim limitation(s) does/do not recite sufficient structure, materials, or acts to perform the claimed function. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102 The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action: A person shall be entitled to a patent unless – (a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale , or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention. 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 1-6, and 11-17 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102 (a)(1) as being anticipated by Radier U. S. Patent Application Publication No. US 20110196962 A1 [hereinafter Radier ] . As per claim 1, 13, 14 Radier discloses A method of processing a request to a ctivate at least one interface of an item of host equipment with a first local area communication network managed by the item of host equipment, the item of host equipment and the at least one interface being in standby mode, wherein the method comprises: receiving from an item of terminal equipment of an application message requesting activation of the interface of the item of host equipment with the first network on an interface, that has remained active , of the item of host equipment with a second local area communication network (see pars. 0118-0123, where du ring an activation step E.sub.9, the application server 9 activates the service adapted as a function of these two types of information by sending a command C to the terminal 1a via the home gateway 3. On reception of this command C, the user of the terminal may use the adapted service. verifying that the item of terminal equipment is authorized to access the at least one first network from an address, referred to as a second address, of the item of terminal equipment on the second network, and when the item of terminal equipment is authorized to access the at least one first network, activating the at least one interface of the first network (see par. 0109, where he application server 9 can use such information to find out the type of connectivity used by a terminal and thus to verif y that the terminal is connected to the home gateway 3 or that the access line of the network is not saturated ). as per claim 2 , Radier discloses t he method of processing according to claim 1, wherein the verifying comprises consulting a table stored in memory, the item of terminal equipment being authorized to access the first local network, when the table associates at least with the second address of the item of terminal equipment for the second local network an address, referred to as a first address, of the item of terminal equipment for the first local network (see par. 0094) as per claim 3 , Radier discloses t he method of processing according to claim 2, wherein the verifying includes verifying that the activation request has been received within an authorized time slot (see par. 0093, 0128) as per claim 4 , Radier discloses The method of processing according to claim 1, wherein the receiving comprises obtaining an item of information indicating that the action requested is the activation of the first local network, the item of information being included in the message (see par. 0121-0124) . as per claim 5 , Radier discloses The method of processing according to claim 1, wherein the receiving comprises obtaining at least one item of information identifying a service performed by the item of terminal equipment, the item of information being included in the message, and in that the verifying comprises verifying that the service is authorized (see par. 0109, 0120) as per claim 6 , Radier discloses t he method of processing according to claim 5, wherein the item of host equipment comprises an interface with a wide area communication network, the method comprises determining from the service identifier other network interfaces to activate for implementing the service and activating the other network interfaces (see par. 0132) . As per claim 11 and 15 Radier discloses method of requesting to activate at least one interface of an item of host equipment with a first local area communication network managed by the item of host equipment, the item of host equipment and the at least one interface being in standby mode, wherein the method is implemented by an item of terminal equipment and comprises: sending to the item of host equipment an application message requesting activation of the at least one interface of the first network on an interface that has remained active of the item of host equipment with a second local area communication network (see par. 0118, 0123, where d uring a send ing step E.sub.6, the autoconfiguration server 5 send s the session server 7 a message M.sub.1 containing the local environment information I.sub.5 previously obtained. For example, the message M.sub.1 includes parameters relating to the various communications interfaces available at the level of the home gateway 3 of the home network 2 ) . upon detection of the first network, sending a connection request to the interface (see par. 0126-0150-0151)) ; and executing a service using the connection to the first network (see par. 0150-0151) . As per claim 12 , Radier discloses The method of requesting to activate according claim 11, wherein the method comprises a search for the first network of the item of host equipment and in that it triggers the transmission in the second network of an application message requesting activation of an interface of the item of host equipment with the first network in the absence of detection of the first network (see par. 0121-0123) . As per claim 16 -17 Radier discloses A host equipment c onfigured to manage a first local area communication network and a second local area communication network, the item of host equipment comprising at least one interface with the first network, the host equipment and the at least one interface being in standby mode, and at least one interface that has remained active with the second local network, wherein the item of host equipment comprises a device for processing a request for activating an interface with the first network from an item of terminal equipment according to claim 14 (see pars. 0118-0123) . Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to FILLIN "Examiner name" \* MERGEFORMAT ABDULLAHI ELMI SALAD whose telephone number is FILLIN "Phone number" \* MERGEFORMAT (571)272-4009 . The examiner can normally be reached FILLIN "Work Schedule?" \* MERGEFORMAT 9:30AM-6:PM . 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, FILLIN "SPE Name?" \* MERGEFORMAT Faruk Hamza can be reached at FILLIN "SPE Phone?" \* MERGEFORMAT 571-272-7969 . 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. /ABDULLAHI E SALAD/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2466
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Prosecution Timeline

Oct 19, 2023
Application Filed
Mar 21, 2026
Non-Final Rejection — §102 (current)

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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
85%
Grant Probability
94%
With Interview (+9.4%)
3y 2m
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 967 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allow rate.

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