Prosecution Insights
Last updated: May 29, 2026
Application No. 18/602,264

COMMUNICATION METHOD AND RELATED APPARATUS

Non-Final OA §103
Filed
Mar 12, 2024
Priority
Sep 15, 2021 — CN 202111081765.9 +1 more
Examiner
TON, DANG T
Art Unit
2476
Tech Center
2400 — Computer Networks
Assignee
Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd.
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
89%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
0m
Est. Remaining
90%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 89% — above average
89%
Career Allowance Rate
532 granted / 600 resolved
+30.7% vs TC avg
Minimal +1% lift
Without
With
+0.9%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Fast prosecutor
2y 2m
Avg Prosecution
29 currently pending
Career history
626
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
2.6%
-37.4% vs TC avg
§103
62.4%
+22.4% vs TC avg
§102
12.8%
-27.2% vs TC avg
§112
7.3%
-32.7% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 600 resolved cases

Office Action

§103
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 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. 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. Claims 1 and 17 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Li et al. (2018/0310338) in view of Li et al. (2021/0232778). For claim 1 , Li et al. (2018/0310338) discloses a communication method comprising: receiving, by a first device, first indication information from a second device; and enabling or disabling, by the first device, an intelligent channel access function based on the first indication information, wherein the intelligent channel access function includes accessing a channel ( See paragraphs 0026 lines 1-2 and 0027 lines 1-4). Li et al. (2018/0310338) also discloses a processor; and a memory configured to store computer readable instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the communication apparatus to executing. For claim 1, Li et al. (2018/0310338) discloses all the subject matter of the claimed invention with the exception of accessing a channel based on a channel access decision output by a neural network. Li et al. (2021/0232778) from the same or similar fields of endeavor teaches a provision of accessing a channel based on a channel access decision output by a neural network ( See paragraph 0051 lines 1-5). Thus, it would have been obvious to the person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to use accessing a channel based on a channel access decision output by a neural network as taught by Li et al. (2021/0232778) in the communications network of Li et al. (2018/0310338) for the purpose of using the neural network. The independent claim 17 is rejected for the same reason as claim 1. Claims 2-16 and 18-20 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 prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Aha et al. (11700546) is cited to show a system which is considered pertinent to the claimed invention. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to DANG T TON whose telephone number is (571)272-3171. The examiner can normally be reached Monday to Friday 5:30 AM to 3:00 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, Ayaz Sheikh can be reached at 571-272-3795. 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. /DANG T TON/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2476 /D.T.T/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2476
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Mar 12, 2024
Application Filed
Mar 18, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §103 (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

Patent 12639988
Scalable Digital Twin Services for intelligent transport systems (ITS) with Optimized Communication and Dynamic Resource Adaptation
3y 8m to grant Granted May 26, 2026
Patent 12641403
MOBILE NODE AWARENESS OF VIRTUAL ACCESS POINTS
3y 4m to grant Granted May 26, 2026
Patent 12634941
DYNAMIC INDICATION OF UPLINK TRANSMISSION PARAMETERS VIA CONFIGURED GRANT-UCI (CG-UCI)
3y 3m to grant Granted May 19, 2026
Patent 12628022
SYSTEMS, METHODS, AND DEVICES FOR ENHANCED MEASUREMENT GAP SHARING AND MEASUREMENT GAP PATTERNS
2y 9m to grant Granted May 12, 2026
Patent 12628145
ELECTRONIC DEVICE, WIRELESS COMMUNICATION METHOD, AND COMPUTER READABLE STORAGE MEDIUM
1y 10m to grant Granted May 12, 2026
Study what changed to get past this examiner. Based on 5 most recent grants.

Strategy Recommendation AI-generated — please review before filing

Get a prosecution strategy drawn from examiner precedents, rejection analysis, and claim mapping.
Typically takes 5-10 seconds — AI-generated, attorney review required before filing

Prosecution Projections

1-2
Expected OA Rounds
89%
Grant Probability
90%
With Interview (+0.9%)
2y 2m (~0m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 600 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

Sign in with your work email

Enter your email to receive a magic link. No password needed.

Personal email addresses (Gmail, Yahoo, etc.) are not accepted.

Free tier: 3 strategy analyses per month