Prosecution Insights
Last updated: April 19, 2026
Application No. 18/564,404

CONTROL SYSTEM, CONTROL METHOD, CONTROLLER, AND PROGRAM

Non-Final OA §102
Filed
Nov 27, 2023
Examiner
HAILU, KIBROM T
Art Unit
2461
Tech Center
2400 — Computer Networks
Assignee
Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
80%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
2y 11m
To Grant
86%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 80% — above average
80%
Career Allow Rate
677 granted / 847 resolved
+21.9% vs TC avg
Moderate +6% lift
Without
With
+6.3%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 11m
Avg Prosecution
40 currently pending
Career history
887
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
4.7%
-35.3% vs TC avg
§103
49.9%
+9.9% vs TC avg
§102
23.0%
-17.0% vs TC avg
§112
12.9%
-27.1% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 847 resolved cases

Office Action

§102
DETAILED 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 . Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102 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. 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)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention. Claims 1-5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Babbellapati et al. (US 2023/0422085 A1). Regarding claim 1, Babbellapati disclose a control system for controlling traffic in a wireless network, the control system comprising: a terminal (124) and an access point (110) which mutually transmit packets over the wireless network (figs. 2, 4, and 6; and so on); and a controller (150) which performs transmission control on the terminal and the access point (figs. 2 and 4; paragraph [0086]-[0090]; and so on), wherein: the terminal holds in advance information about a node number and a flow-based buffer of its own device (paragraph [0034]; [0049]; and etc., illustrating storing or buffered traffic or data at buffer before communicating with the AP and 5g-CPE); before the access point establishes a connection with the terminal, the controller establishes a connection with the terminal using a connection sequence according to a protocol available in the wireless network (paragraph [0085]-[0087]; [0031]; [0075]; and so on, explaining establishing a connection with the UE or STA first using such as 5G WLAN network protocol), and acquires, from the terminal, the information about the node number (paragraph [0100]-[0102]; [0075]-[0076]; and etc., receiving credential or identifier of the UEs) and the flow-based buffer of the terminal through the wireless network (paragraph [0034]; [0049]; [0112]; and so on, describing the reception of BSR or buffer status report); and after the access point establishes a connection with the terminal, the controller performs transmission control for each traffic flow accumulated in the flow-based buffer of the terminal using the information about the node number and the flow-based buffer of the terminal acquired through the wireless network (paragraph [0034]; [0086]-[0091]; [0096]; [0032]-[0034]; [0075]-[0076]; [0105]-[0106]; [0112]; [0170]; and so on, illustrating controlling, mapping, scheduling, and coordinating of the traffic flow based on the received information such as the BSR, identifier, and 5QI). Regarding claim 2, Babbellapati disclose wherein, when acquiring the information about the node number and the flow-based buffer from the terminal, the controller notifies the terminal of connection confirmation indicating that the information has been acquired (paragraph [0049]; [0075]; [0100]-[0102]; and etc.). Regarding claims 3-5, the claims are identical to subject matter mentioned in the rejection to claim 1. The claims are mere reformulation of claim 1 in order to define the corresponding control method, controller, and non-transitory computer readable medium, and the rejection to claim 1 is applied hereto. Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to KIBROM T HAILU whose telephone number is (571)270-1209. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8:00 AM to 5:30 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, HUY D VU can be reached at (571)272-3155. 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. /KIBROM T HAILU/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2461
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Prosecution Timeline

Nov 27, 2023
Application Filed
Nov 15, 2025
Non-Final Rejection — §102 (current)

Precedent Cases

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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
80%
Grant Probability
86%
With Interview (+6.3%)
2y 11m
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 847 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allow rate.

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