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 .
Response to Remarks
This Office action is considered fully responsive to the amendment filed 03/30/2026.
The previous specification objection is maintained as it has not been addressed.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments, see Remarks, filed 03/30/2026, with respect to the rejection(s) of claim(s) 1-2, 4-7, 9-11, 13, 15, 17, 19, 21-22, 28-29, 31-32, and 38 under U.S.C. 102 or U.S.C. 103, as previously indicated, have been fully considered and are persuasive. Therefore, the rejection has been withdrawn. However, upon further consideration, a new ground(s) of rejection is made in view of US 20180115927 A1.
Specification
The title of the invention is not descriptive. A new title is required that is clearly indicative of the invention to which the claims are directed.
The following title is suggested: ADMISSION CONTROL METHODS AND DEVICE
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)(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.
Claim(s) 10, 17, 21-22, 28, 31, 38, 40-42, 44-47 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by U.S. Publication No. 2018/0115927 A1 to VESTERINEN et al. (“Vesterinen”).
As to claim 10, Vesterinen discloses an admission control method, performed by a first base station (para. 0065, target BS 138), comprising: receiving coordinated admission control information sent by a core network device or a second base station (para. 0065, a handover request may be sent from the source BS 134 (i.e. second base station) to the target BS 138; para. 0066, in response to the handover request at 416, the target BS 138/target cell 140 may store the UE context for user device 132. The target BS 138/target cell 140 may perform cell admission control for the user device 132; para. 0019, BS 134 is also connected to a core network 150 (i.e. BS 134 is also a “core network device”)); wherein the coordinated admission control information comprises a group identifier, the group identifier is configured to indicate a group to which a terminal belongs or a group to which a service of the terminal belongs (para. 0065, a handover request may be sent from the source BS 134 to the target BS 138 that may include a UE context (i.e. group identifier) , e.g., including information identifying/indicating a plurality of (or group of) QoS policy profiles for the user device 132 (i.e. terminal belongs to this group of QoS policies, and also, quality of services of the terminal are part of a group)), and the coordinated admission control information is configured for the first base station to determine request results of multiple admission control requests of at least one terminal in the group indicated by the group identifier or request results of multiple admission control requests corresponding to services in the group (para. 0066, the target BS 138/target cell 140 may determine a radio resource availability status (e.g., a percentage of radio resources that are available) at the target BS 138/target cell 140, and then may compare these available resources (or a cell congestion status) to the plurality of QoS policy profiles (i.e. multiple QoS profiles reads upon both multiple admission control requests of at least one terminal/corresponding to services for the user device, as each profile pertains to a request for resources)); wherein the coordinated admission control information further comprises at least one of: demand indication information configured to indicate that the terminal has a demand for a coordinated admission control (para. 0065, The UE/user device context, e.g., sent in the handover request at 416, may also include additional information, such as, for example, an indication of a current QoS policy profile (of the plurality/group of QoS policy profiles) that is currently used by the source BS 134/source cell 136 to provide service to the user device 132, and/or an indication of a current resource usage (i.e. demand) by the user device 132 in the source BS 134/source cell 136 (e.g., indicating an amount or percentage of radio resources in the source cell 136 that are used by or allocated to the user device 132 to provide service to the user device 132)) or the terminal does not have a demand for a coordinated admission control; or behavior indication information configured to indicate a way for the first base station to coordinately determine a request result based on a result of at least one admission control request when the terminal has a demand for the coordinated admission control (para. 0066, At 418, in response to the handover request at 416, the target BS 138/target cell 140 may store the UE context for user device 132. The target BS 138/target cell 140 may perform cell admission control for the user device 132 to determine if target BS 138/target cell 140 has sufficient resources to accommodate a handover of user device 132 from source cell 136 to target cell 140. For example, the target BS 138/target cell 140 may determine a radio resource availability status (e.g., a percentage of radio resources that are available) at the target BS 138/target cell 140, and then may compare these available resources (or a cell congestion status) to the plurality of QoS policy profiles for the user device, e.g., to determine if the target BS 138/target cell 140 has sufficient resources to provide service to user device 132 that is within the acceptable QoS policy range (i.e. demand) for user device 132).
As to claim 17, Vesterinen further discloses the method of claim 10, wherein receiving the coordinated admission control information sent by the second base station comprises one of: receiving a handover request message indicating the coordinated admission control information sent by the second base station (para. 0065, a handover request may be sent from the source BS 134 (i.e. second base station) to the target BS 138; para. 0066, in response to the handover request at 416, the target BS 138/target cell 140 may store the UE context for user device 132. The target BS 138/target cell 140 may perform cell admission control for the user device 132); or receiving a context request response message indicating the coordinated admission control information sent by the second base station.
As to claim 21, Vesterinen further discloses the method of claim 10, further comprising: sending capability information to the terminal (fig. 4, steps 424, 426 exchange between Target BS and UE); wherein the capability information is configured to indicate whether the first base station supports to determine the request results by using the coordinated admission control information (fig. 4, steps 424, 426, exchange between Target BS and UE; Data transfer/wireless service by target BS/cell using selected QoS policy profile).
As to claim 22, Vesterinen further discloses the method of claim 10, wherein receiving the coordinated admission control information comprises: receiving the coordinated admission control information sent by a core network device (para. 0065, a handover request may be sent from the source BS 134 (i.e. second base station) to the target BS 138; para. 0066, in response to the handover request at 416, the target BS 138/target cell 140 may store the UE context for user device 132. The target BS 138/target cell 140 may perform cell admission control for the user device 132; para. 0019, BS 134 is also connected to a core network 150 (i.e. BS 134 is also a “core network device”)); wherein receiving the coordinated admission control information sent by the core network device comprises one of: receiving a service setup request message indicating the coordinated admission control information or a service modifying request message sent by the core network device, wherein the service setup request message or the service modifying request message carries the coordinated admission control information (para. 0065, for example, a handover request may be sent from the source BS 134 to the target BS 138 that may include a UE context, e.g., including information identifying/indicating a plurality of (or group of) QoS policy profiles for the user device 132. For example, the UE/user device context may indicate/identify two QoS (i.e. service request/ modifying request) policy profiles (or may identify QoS parameters values for each policy profile), such as, for example: a first QoS policy profile (e.g., a non-congested policy profile to use in non-congested cell conditions/or where more than a threshold amount of radio resources are available), and a second QoS policy profile (e.g., a congested policy profile to use in non-congested cell conditions/or where less than a threshold amount of radio resources are available). The UE/user device context, e.g., sent in the handover request at 416, may also include additional information, such as, for example, an indication of a current QoS policy profile (of the plurality/group of QoS policy profiles) that is currently used by the source BS 134/source cell 136 to provide service to the user device 132, and/or an indication of a current resource usage by the user device 132 in the source BS 134/source cell 136 (e.g., indicating an amount or percentage of radio resources in the source cell 136 that are used by or allocated to the user device 132 to provide service to the user device 132). The user device/UE context may include additional information.); receiving a service modifying request message indicating the coordinated admission control information sent by the core network device ((para. 0065, for example, a handover request may be sent from the source BS 134 to the target BS 138 that may include a UE context, e.g., including information identifying/indicating a plurality of (or group of) QoS policy profiles for the user device 132. For example, the UE/user device context may indicate/identify two QoS (i.e. service request/ modifying request) policy profiles (or may identify QoS parameters values for each policy profile), such as, for example: a first QoS policy profile (e.g., a non-congested policy profile to use in non-congested cell conditions/or where more than a threshold amount of radio resources are available), and a second QoS policy profile (e.g., a congested policy profile to use in non-congested cell conditions/or where less than a threshold amount of radio resources are available). The UE/user device context, e.g., sent in the handover request at 416, may also include additional information, such as, for example, an indication of a current QoS policy profile (of the plurality/group of QoS policy profiles) that is currently used by the source BS 134/source cell 136 to provide service to the user device 132, and/or an indication of a current resource usage by the user device 132 in the source BS 134/source cell 136 (e.g., indicating an amount or percentage of radio resources in the source cell 136 that are used by or allocated to the user device 132 to provide service to the user device 132). The user device/UE context may include additional information.); para. 0066, At 418, in response to the handover request at 416, the target BS 138/target cell 140 may store the UE context for user device 132. The target BS 138/target cell 140 may perform cell admission control for the user device 132 to determine if target BS 138/target cell 140 has sufficient resources to accommodate a handover of user device 132 from source cell 136 to target cell 140.); or receiving a handover request message indicating the coordinated admission control information sent by the core network device, wherein the handover request message carries the coordinated admission control information (para. 0065, a handover request may be sent from the source BS 134 (i.e. second base station) to the target BS 138; para. 0066, in response to the handover request at 416, the target BS 138/target cell 140 may store the UE context for user device 132. The target BS 138/target cell 140 may perform cell admission control for the user device 132; para. 0019, BS 134 is also connected to a core network 150 (i.e. BS 134 is also a “core network device”)).
As to claim 28, Vesterinen discloses an admission control method, performed by a core network device (para. 0019, BS 134 is also connected to a core network 150 (i.e. BS 134 is also a “core network device”)), comprising: sending coordinated admission control information to a first base station (para. 0065, a handover request may be sent from the source BS 134 to the target BS 138 (i.e. first base station); para. 0066, in response to the handover request at 416, the target BS 138/target cell 140 may store the UE context for user device 132. The target BS 138/target cell 140 may perform cell admission control for the user device 132); wherein the coordinated admission control information comprises a group identifier, the group identifier configured to indicate a group to which a terminal belongs or a group to which a service of the terminal belongs, and the coordinated admission control information is configured for the first base station to determine request results of multiple admission control requests of at least one terminal in the group indicated by the group identifier or request results of multiple admission control requests corresponding to services in the group (para. 0066, the target BS 138/target cell 140 may determine a radio resource availability status (e.g., a percentage of radio resources that are available) at the target BS 138/target cell 140, and then may compare these available resources (or a cell congestion status) to the plurality of QoS policy profiles (i.e. multiple QoS profiles reads upon both multiple admission control requests of at least one terminal/corresponding to services for the user device, as each profile pertains to a request for resources)); wherein the coordinated admission control information further comprises at least one of: demand indication information configured to indicate that the terminal has a demand for a coordinated admission control (para. 0065, The UE/user device context, e.g., sent in the handover request at 416, may also include additional information, such as, for example, an indication of a current QoS policy profile (of the plurality/group of QoS policy profiles) that is currently used by the source BS 134/source cell 136 to provide service to the user device 132, and/or an indication of a current resource usage (i.e. demand) by the user device 132 in the source BS 134/source cell 136 (e.g., indicating an amount or percentage of radio resources in the source cell 136 that are used by or allocated to the user device 132 to provide service to the user device 132)) or the terminal does not have a demand for a coordinated admission control; or behavior indication information configured to indicate a way for the first base station to coordinately determine a request result based on a result of at least one admission control request when the terminal has a demand for the coordinated admission control (para. 0066, At 418, in response to the handover request at 416, the target BS 138/target cell 140 may store the UE context for user device 132. The target BS 138/target cell 140 may perform cell admission control for the user device 132 to determine if target BS 138/target cell 140 has sufficient resources to accommodate a handover of user device 132 from source cell 136 to target cell 140. For example, the target BS 138/target cell 140 may determine a radio resource availability status (e.g., a percentage of radio resources that are available) at the target BS 138/target cell 140, and then may compare these available resources (or a cell congestion status) to the plurality of QoS policy profiles for the user device, e.g., to determine if the target BS 138/target cell 140 has sufficient resources to provide service to user device 132 that is within the acceptable QoS policy range (i.e. demand) for user device 132).
As to claim 31, Vesterinen further discloses the method of claim 28, wherein sending the coordinated admission control information to the first base station comprises one of: sending a service setup request message indicating the coordinated admission control information to the first base station (para. 0065, for example, a handover request may be sent from the source BS 134 to the target BS 138 that may include a UE context, e.g., including information identifying/indicating a plurality of (or group of) QoS policy profiles for the user device 132. For example, the UE/user device context may indicate/identify two QoS (i.e. service request/ modifying request) policy profiles (or may identify QoS parameters values for each policy profile), such as, for example: a first QoS policy profile (e.g., a non-congested policy profile to use in non-congested cell conditions/or where more than a threshold amount of radio resources are available), and a second QoS policy profile (e.g., a congested policy profile to use in non-congested cell conditions/or where less than a threshold amount of radio resources are available). The UE/user device context, e.g., sent in the handover request at 416, may also include additional information, such as, for example, an indication of a current QoS policy profile (of the plurality/group of QoS policy profiles) that is currently used by the source BS 134/source cell 136 to provide service to the user device 132, and/or an indication of a current resource usage by the user device 132 in the source BS 134/source cell 136 (e.g., indicating an amount or percentage of radio resources in the source cell 136 that are used by or allocated to the user device 132 to provide service to the user device 132). The user device/UE context may include additional information.); sending a service modifying request message indicating the coordinated admission control information to the first base station ((para. 0065, for example, a handover request may be sent from the source BS 134 to the target BS 138 that may include a UE context, e.g., including information identifying/indicating a plurality of (or group of) QoS policy profiles for the user device 132. For example, the UE/user device context may indicate/identify two QoS (i.e. service request/ modifying request) policy profiles (or may identify QoS parameters values for each policy profile), such as, for example: a first QoS policy profile (e.g., a non-congested policy profile to use in non-congested cell conditions/or where more than a threshold amount of radio resources are available), and a second QoS policy profile (e.g., a congested policy profile to use in non-congested cell conditions/or where less than a threshold amount of radio resources are available). The UE/user device context, e.g., sent in the handover request at 416, may also include additional information, such as, for example, an indication of a current QoS policy profile (of the plurality/group of QoS policy profiles) that is currently used by the source BS 134/source cell 136 to provide service to the user device 132, and/or an indication of a current resource usage by the user device 132 in the source BS 134/source cell 136 (e.g., indicating an amount or percentage of radio resources in the source cell 136 that are used by or allocated to the user device 132 to provide service to the user device 132). The user device/UE context may include additional information.); para. 0066, At 418, in response to the handover request at 416, the target BS 138/target cell 140 may store the UE context for user device 132. The target BS 138/target cell 140 may perform cell admission control for the user device 132 to determine if target BS 138/target cell 140 has sufficient resources to accommodate a handover of user device 132 from source cell 136 to target cell 140.); or sending a handover request message indicating the coordinated admission control information to the first base station (para. 0065, a handover request may be sent from the source BS 134 (i.e. second base station) to the target BS 138; para. 0066, in response to the handover request at 416, the target BS 138/target cell 140 may store the UE context for user device 132. The target BS 138/target cell 140 may perform cell admission control for the user device 132; para. 0019, BS 134 is also connected to a core network 150 (i.e. BS 134 is also a “core network device”)).
As to claim 38, Vesterinen further discloses a communication device, comprising: a memory storing executable instructions (fig. 5, para. 0050, an apparatus may include at least one processor, and at least one non-transitory computer-readable storage medium comprising instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, are configured to cause the apparatus to perform any method operation(s) described or illustrated herein); and a processor connected to the memory, and configured to perform the method of claim 10 (fig. 5, para. 0050, an apparatus may include at least one processor, and at least one non-transitory computer-readable storage medium comprising instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, are configured to cause the apparatus to perform any method operation(s) described or illustrated herein).
As to claim 40, Vesterinen further discloses the method of claim 10, wherein the at least one terminal is a terminal that acquires multimode information (para. 0074, User device 132 may also be connected to multiple serving BSs/cells at a time; para. 0018, user device 132 may receive wireless services, i.e. multiple BSs or multiple services are multimode).
As to claim 41, Vesterinen further discloses the method of claim 10, wherein the at least one terminal in the group, or the at least one terminal, is configured to acquire information of video services and voice services (para. 0078, in addition, referring to FIG. 5, a controller (or processor) 508 may execute software and instructions, and may provide overall control for the station 500, and may provide control for other systems not shown in FIG. 5, such as controlling input/output devices (e.g., display, keypad), and/or may execute software for one or more applications that may be provided on wireless station 500, such as, for example, an email program, audio/video applications, a word processor, a Voice over IP application ).
As to claim 42, Vesterinen further discloses the method of claim 10, wherein the group identifier is further configured to implicitly indicate an association relationship between a terminal and other terminals, wherein terminals within the group indicated by the group identifier are all used to acquire multimode information (fig. 4, Handover Request with UE context sent from Source BS 134 to Target BS 138, while UE is connected to 134 for data transfer/wireless service; further, UE mobility event message with indication of selected QoS policy profile to be used sent to DEM 155, eventually, handover of UE 132 and communication of data transfer/wireless services goes to Target BS 138, i.e. every entity is a terminal, and these exchanges pertain to the UE and its multiple services).
As to claim 44, Vesterinen further discloses the method of claim 22, wherein the service setup or modification request message comprises one of the following: a packet data network (PDN) (para. 0021, one or more gateways that may forward data and control signals between the BSs and packet data networks) session resource setup request message (para. 0065, handover request…resource usage); a PDN session (para. 0021, one or more gateways that may forward data and control signals between the BSs and packet data networks) resource modification request message (para. 0065, handover request…resource usage); an initial context setup request message (para. 0065, handover request…UE context); a PDN session (para. 0021, one or more gateways that may forward data and control signals between the BSs and packet data networks) service setup or modification message (para. 0065, handover request…QoS…resource usage).
As to claim 45, Vesterinen further discloses the method of claim 44, wherein the coordinated admission control information is carried in a quality of service (QoS) flow setup information unit of the PDN session service setup or modification request message (para. 0065, handover request…UE context…QoS policy profiles).
As to claim 46, Vesterinen further discloses the method of claim 45, wherein the coordinated admission control information is used to indicate a group to which the QoS flow belongs (para. 0065, a handover request may be sent from the source BS 134 to the target BS 138 that may include a UE context, e.g., including information identifying/indicating a plurality of (or group of) QoS policy profiles).
As to claim 47, Vesterinen discloses an admission control method, performed by a terminal (para. 0065, Source BS 134), comprising: sending coordinated admission control information to a first base station (para. 0065, a handover request may be sent from the source BS 134 to the target BS 138 (i.e. first base station); para. 0066, in response to the handover request at 416, the target BS 138/target cell 140 may store the UE context for user device 132. The target BS 138/target cell 140 may perform cell admission control for the user device 132; para. 0019, BS 134 is also connected to a core network 150 (i.e. BS 134 is also a “core network device”)); wherein the coordinated admission control information comprises a group identifier, the group identifier configured to indicate a group to which the terminal belongs or a group to which a service of the terminal belongs, and the coordinated admission control information is configured for the first base station to determine request results of multiple admission control requests of at least one terminal in the group indicated by the group identifier or request results of multiple admission control requests corresponding to services in the group (para. 0066, the target BS 138/target cell 140 may determine a radio resource availability status (e.g., a percentage of radio resources that are available) at the target BS 138/target cell 140, and then may compare these available resources (or a cell congestion status) to the plurality of QoS policy profiles (i.e. multiple QoS profiles reads upon both multiple admission control requests of at least one terminal/corresponding to services for the user device, as each profile pertains to a request for resources)); wherein the coordinated admission control information further comprises at least one of: demand indication information configured to indicate that the terminal has a demand for a coordinated admission control (para. 0065, The UE/user device context, e.g., sent in the handover request at 416, may also include additional information, such as, for example, an indication of a current QoS policy profile (of the plurality/group of QoS policy profiles) that is currently used by the source BS 134/source cell 136 to provide service to the user device 132, and/or an indication of a current resource usage (i.e. demand) by the user device 132 in the source BS 134/source cell 136 (e.g., indicating an amount or percentage of radio resources in the source cell 136 that are used by or allocated to the user device 132 to provide service to the user device 132)) or the terminal does not have a demand for a coordinated admission control; or behavior indication information configured to indicate a way for the first base station to coordinately determine a request result based on a result of at least one admission control request when the terminal has a demand for the coordinated admission control (para. 0066, At 418, in response to the handover request at 416, the target BS 138/target cell 140 may store the UE context for user device 132. The target BS 138/target cell 140 may perform cell admission control for the user device 132 to determine if target BS 138/target cell 140 has sufficient resources to accommodate a handover of user device 132 from source cell 136 to target cell 140. For example, the target BS 138/target cell 140 may determine a radio resource availability status (e.g., a percentage of radio resources that are available) at the target BS 138/target cell 140, and then may compare these available resources (or a cell congestion status) to the plurality of QoS policy profiles for the user device, e.g., to determine if the target BS 138/target cell 140 has sufficient resources to provide service to user device 132 that is within the acceptable QoS policy range (i.e. demand) for user device 132).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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 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.
The factual inquiries 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.
Claim(s) 13, 19, 48 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over U.S. Publication No. 2018/0115927 A1 to VESTERINEN et al. (“Vesterinen”) in view of U.S. Publication No. 2021/0136659 A1 to Ianev et al. (“Ianev”) [provided by Applicant].
As to claim 13, Vesterinen does not expressly disclose the method of claim 10, wherein receiving the coordinated admission control information comprises: receiving the coordinated admission control information sent by the terminal; wherein receiving the coordinated admission control information sent by the terminal comprises one of: receiving a radio resource control (RRC) connection request message indicating the coordinated admission control information sent by the terminal; or receiving an RRC resume request message indicating the coordinated admission control information sent by the terminal.
Ianev discloses wherein receiving the coordinated admission control information comprises: receiving the coordinated admission control information sent by the terminal; wherein receiving the coordinated admission control information sent by the terminal comprises one of: receiving a radio resource control (RRC) connection request message indicating the coordinated admission control information sent by the terminal (fig. 8, step 4, UE sends RRC Connection request to gNB/eNB; para. 0081, with delay tolerant RRC establishment cause); or receiving an RRC resume request message indicating the coordinated admission control information sent by the terminal.
Prior to the effective filing date of invention, it would have been obvious to a
person of ordinary skill in the art to incorporate the RRC request of Ianev into the invention of Vesterinen. The suggestion/motivation would have been to have 5G congestion control (Ianeve, para. 0002). Including the RRC request of Ianev into the invention of Vesterinen was within the ordinary ability of one of ordinary skill in the art based on the teachings of Ianev.
As to claim 19, Vesterinen does not expressly disclose the method of claim 10, further comprising: sending the coordinated admission control information to the terminal; wherein sending the coordinated admission control information to the terminal comprises one of: sending a broadcast signaling indicating the coordinated admission control information to the terminal; or sending a dedicated signaling indicating the coordinated admission control information to the terminal.
Ianev discloses sending the coordinated admission control information to the terminal (para. 0091, RRC Connection Reject message); wherein sending the coordinated admission control information to the terminal comprises one of: sending a broadcast signaling indicating the coordinated admission control information to the terminal; or sending a dedicated signaling indicating the coordinated admission control information to the terminal (para. 0091, the RRC Connection Reject message (which may include low priority wait timer or background data wait timer) if the request is via RRC Connection Establishment Request message).
Prior to the effective filing date of invention, it would have been obvious to a
person of ordinary skill in the art to incorporate the RRC reject message of Ianev into the invention of Vesterinen. The suggestion/motivation would have been to have 5G congestion control (Ianev, para. 0002). Including the RRC reject message of Ianev into the invention of Vesterinen was within the ordinary ability of one of ordinary skill in the art based on the teachings of Ianev.
As to claim 48, Vesterinen does not expressly disclose the method of claim 47, wherein sending the coordinated admission control information to the first base station comprises one of: sending a radio resource control (RRC) connection request message indicating the coordinated admission control information to the first base station; or sending an RRC resume request message indicating the coordinated admission control information to the first base station.
Ianev discloses wherein sending the coordinated admission control information to the first base station comprises one of: sending a radio resource control (RRC) connection request message indicating the coordinated admission control information to the first base station (fig. 8, step 4, UE sends RRC Connection request to gNB/eNB; para. 0081, with delay tolerant RRC establishment cause); or sending an RRC resume request message indicating the coordinated admission control information to the first base station.
Prior to the effective filing date of invention, it would have been obvious to a
person of ordinary skill in the art to incorporate the RRC request of Ianev into the invention of Vesterinen. The suggestion/motivation would have been to have 5G congestion control (Ianeve, para. 0002). Including the RRC request of Ianev into the invention of Vesterinen was within the ordinary ability of one of ordinary skill in the art based on the teachings of Ianev.
Claim(s) 15 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over U.S. Publication No. 2018/0115927 A1 to VESTERINEN et al. (“Vesterinen”) in view of U.S. Publication No. 2021/0136659 A1 to Ianev et al. (“Ianev”) [provided by Applicant] and in further view of U.S. Publication No. 2017/0231006 A1 to Yin et al. (“Yin”).
As to claim 15, Vesterinen does not expressly disclose the method of claim 10, further comprising: sending an RRC rejection response message to the terminal; wherein waiting timer information indicated by the RRC rejection response message is configured according to the coordinated admission control information; wherein the waiting timer information of terminals in a same group is the same.
Ianev discloses sending an RRC rejection response message to the terminal (para. 0083-0084, The RAN node may include in the RRC Connection Reject message a delay tolerant wait timer); wherein waiting timer information indicated by the RRC rejection response message is configured according to the coordinated admission control information (para. 0083-0084, The delay tolerant wait timer can be indicated in the RRC Reject message explicitly by including a designated ‘delay tolerant wait timer’ or implicitly by including a legacy wait timer which if returned within RRC Connection Reject message as an answer to a request for delay tolerant access, would implicitly restrict any further request for delay tolerant access from that UE).
Prior to the effective filing date of invention, it would have been obvious to a
person of ordinary skill in the art to incorporate the RRC request of Ianev into the invention of Vesterinen. The suggestion/motivation would have been to have 5G congestion control (Ianeve, para. 0002). Including the RRC request of Ianev into the invention of Vesterinen was within the ordinary ability of one of ordinary skill in the art based on the teachings of Ianev.
Yin discloses at para. 0070: if a backoff counter is signaled by the eNB 160, the counter value should be always synchronized at the LAA UEs 102 (i.e. a same group).
Prior to the effective filing date of invention, it would have been obvious to a
person of ordinary skill in the art to incorporate the counter of Yin into the invention of Vesterinen and Ianev. The suggestion/motivation would have been to have simultaneous UL LAA transmissions (Yin, para. 0070). Including the counter of Yin into the invention of Vesterinen and Ianev was within the ordinary ability of one of ordinary skill in the art based on the teachings of Yin.
Claim(s) 17, 43 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over U.S. Publication No. 2018/0115927 A1 to VESTERINEN et al. (“Vesterinen”) in view of U.S. Publication No. 2019/0223073 A1 to CHEN et al. (“Chen”).
As to claim 17, Vesterinen does not expressly disclose the method of claim 10, wherein receiving the coordinated admission control information sent by the second base station comprises one of: receiving a handover request message indicating the coordinated admission control information sent by the second base station; or receiving a context request response message indicating the coordinated admission control information sent by the second base station.
Chen discloses at para. 0003: upon receiving the measurement report, the source base station may send a Handover Request message to multiple target base stations (e.g., eNB or gNB) for admission control, i.e. receiving the coordinated admission control information sent by a second base station; wherein receiving the coordinated admission control information sent by the second base station comprises one of: receiving a handover request message indicating the coordinated admission control information sent by the second base station and at para. 0003: and receive Handover Acknowledgement messages from the target base stations, i.e. receiving a context request response message indicating the coordinated admission control information sent by the second base station.
Prior to the effective filing date of invention, it would have been obvious to a
person of ordinary skill in the art to incorporate the messages of Chen into the invention of Vesterinen. The suggestion/motivation would have been to have a handover procedure that is triggered by a measurement report from the UE (Chen, para. 0003). Including the messages of Chen into the invention of Vesterinen was within the ordinary ability of one of ordinary skill in the art based on the teachings of Chen.
As to claim 43, Vesterinen and Chen further discloses the method of claim 17, wherein the handover request message is carried in a quality of service (QoS) flow setup information unit of the handover request message (Vesterinen, para. 0065, For example, a handover request may be sent from the source BS 134 to the target BS 138 that may include a UE context (i.e. information unit), e.g., including information identifying/indicating a plurality of (or group of) QoS policy profiles for the user device 132.). In addition, as the primary reference is used to teach the instant claim limitations, the same suggestion/motivation of claim 17 applies.
Claim(s) 32 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over U.S. Publication No. 2018/0115927 A1 to VESTERINEN et al. (“Vesterinen”) in view of U.S. Publication No. 2020/0100291 A1 to RAVISHANKAR et al. (“Ravishankar”).
As to claim 32, Vesterinen does not expressly disclose the method of claim 28, further comprising: sending the coordinated admission control information to the terminal; wherein sending the coordinated admission control information to the terminal comprises: sending an attach procedure message indicating the coordinated admission control information to the terminal.
Ravishankar discloses at para. 0058: Further, with regard to UE location, according to the respective 3GPP standards, the MME tracks UE location via a Tracking Area Identifier (TAI). The TAI is used for various purposes, including paging the UE, admission control, billing processes, etc. For example, the TAI identifies the UE location, which in turn identifies the associated eNodeB or gateway for paging purposes. Further, the UE location is necessary to determine admission control and appropriate billing for UE sessions. For example, admission restrictions may apply when a UE is located in a particular jurisdiction, and also different billing processes may be applied depending on jurisdiction of UE location. The UE TAI is generally initially established with the MME during the Initial Attach procedures. By way of example, during the Initial Attach, the UE provides the TAI associated with its current location to the MME with the Attach Request message (e.g., the UE may obtain the TAI by first providing its current location information to the SBSS, and the SBSS in turn determines the respective TAI for that location and provides the TAI back to the UE). The MME stores the TAI in association with the respective UE, and provides the UE with a TAI List included in the Attach Accept message sent back to the UE. The TAI List identifies a list of TAIs that the UE may travel in without having to request/initiate a Tracking Area Update (TAU) process.
Prior to the effective filing date of invention, it would have been obvious to a
person of ordinary skill in the art to incorporate the attach procedures of Ravishankar into the invention of Vesterinen. The suggestion/motivation would have been to identify a list of TAIs that the UE may travel in without having to request/initiate a Tracking Area Update (TAU) process (Ravishankar, para. 0058). Including the messages of Ravishankar into the invention of Vesterinen was within the ordinary ability of one of ordinary skill in the art based on the teachings of Ravishankar.
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 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.
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/OMAR J GHOWRWAL/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2463
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